Love Will Always Win
by swimhard500
Summary: Olivia and Elliot's Love conquers everything that Kathy throws at them. This is my take on how season 12 ended and how season 13 started and then finished. Please R and R. The Elliot and Olviia scenes will be later! Please Read and Review.
1. Here I Go Again

Chapter 1: Here I Go Again

Elliot had noticed a huge change in himself, his partner, the way they interacted and his co-workers ever since he was finished was Kathy. Even though he was still there for his kids, he was done with that woman and the SVU squad has seemed much lighter. Fin and Munch had bets on when Olivia and Elliot would become more than just partners. Everyone saw a difference in their relationship and everything was improving.

At work one day, Elliot received a phone call that shocked the hell out of him. It was from his now ex-wife, Kathy.

"Hey, I need to talk to you."

"Kathy, what now?"

"I want you back. The kids need you. I need you. I've tried living on my own for a few months now and I simply can't do it. I mean we were married at a young age. I just miss you. Eli has even tried to get me to see you."

"I will see Eli when I pick him up, but don't think that the job that I have will just suddenly go out of the window. I'm still a cop."

"I know, and before I couldn't handle being married to a cop, but believe me now. I'm ready for you to come back. I don't care what your job is, I just need you."

"I've got a lot to think about. Let me call you in a few days. I'll see Eli and the kids tonight and talk to them about everything. But Kathy, you do realize that everything has changed. I'm not the same guy you once knew and loved."

"I realize that. Talk to you soon. Bye." Kathy hung up the phone and on Elliot's side; one could tell he was in shock.

"El, what was that about? You look like you've seen a ghost. Are you okay? Is everything okay with the kids?"

"I can't talk about it right now, Liv; just give me a little time to think. Hopefully by this afternoon, I can wrap my head around this phone call."

"Okay, but right now can you wrap your head around this case? We've got a situation out on Berkley St."

"Absolutely, what's the case?" Elliot asked his partner as he grabbed his coat and went with her. She explained everything on the way, but still he couldn't get his mind off of the weird phone call he had with Kathy.

Olivia could see that this phone call obviously upset Elliot. What did Kathy say? She wanted to know, but didn't want to barge in on their relationship, because that's what kind of messed it up in the first place. But she had to know, given his spacey mood.

"Elliot, can you tell me now? Come On, we're partners, you got to be able to share things with me."

"Fine, Liv. Kathy has asked me to move back in with her. She claims that the kids need her. I am just so confused. I don't want to be selfish, when it comes to the kids, but she's the one that broke the marriage off with me because of my relationship with you and the fact that I have a crazy work schedule, which you are aware of. What do I do Liv?"

"Do you want to move back in with her El? Is that what you want?" Olivia said, holding her breath. She hoped he wanted her, but in this case, she understood.

"Maybe, I think for the kids' sake I do, but I'm not moving back with her for her."

"Then I think for the kids' sake, you should. Don't worry, your SVU family, will be behind whatever decision you make." Olivia said, half telling the truth. She wanted him to be happy, but with her. But she was telling the truth about the family being behind him.

Elliot called Kathy the next day and told her for the kids' sake that he would make this work. He would only do it for the kids. He wasn't ready to forgive her yet for the way she reacted to Elliot's job and mainly Olivia. Kathy wanted to know what was going on with Olivia, who also spoke to her earlier that day. He explained that they had reached a new found relationship and have improved their partnership since the divorce. But there was never a time when things got overly attached. They were just friends, partners, and family. But Kathy wasn't happy with that. She knew that an ultimatum had to be made and the next week after everything was settled down she would tell Elliot her decision. Something had to be done.

The only child that was happy to see his father more was Eli. The other children knew how Elliot and Olivia felt about each other and it was just a matter of time before Olivia and Elliot realized it for them.

After Elliot moved back in with Kathy the next week, things got back to normal at SVU. Cases were presented and dealt with, emotionally and physically. Also, Elliot's temper was a little bit on the higher side these days and Munch and Fin had only described it as "It's Kathy Time Again". Elliot would laugh and say that he was in the house for the children, but the others saw the truth. He didn't really want to be there.

Meanwhile, Olivia and Elliot's partnership had kind of gone backwards a bit as far as their chemistry and how they dealt with cases. Their partnership was not as close and tight-knitted as it had been a few weeks ago, when Elliot had no contact with Kathy, and the kids seemed to be dealing with it way better, because they knew the true love of their father's life, Olivia. Cragen was on them time and time again for partner dynamics, but things weren't going to change. Elliot didn't see it being a problem. Olivia saw many changes in their work and felt that she gave him wrong advice.

"Fin, I think I screwed up majorly."

"What's wrong Baby Girl?" Fin said when they were alone in the office. Elliot had left for the day, to pick up Eli, and Munch had left to go think of a new conspiracy theory.

"I'm the one that told Elliot to get back with Kathy for the kids. But I think I made a mistake. He's not his normal happy go lucky self and it's my entire fault."

"Liv, you wanted him to be happy. He doesn't seem happy right now and you thought that the kids would make him happy. It's not that big of a deal."

"To me it is. I'm his partner. I should've been there for him."

"You were there. Look Liv, everything's going to be fine."

They both went back to their case load and never spoke of the conversation in front of the others. Olivia felt horrible.

A/N: Please don't throw the computer at me. Ha-ha, later chapters have Olivia and Elliot together.


	2. Ripping off the Band-Aid

Chapter 2: Ripping the Band-Aid OFF

Olivia still felt horrible about how she just let Kathy ruin what was good for her and Elliot. They weren't in a true relationship, yes, but they were kind of growing towards that. When she was at work with him the next few weeks, it was awkward and just nowhere near what had transpired a few weeks before that. Elliot had changed back to the way he was with Kathy and Olivia never liked that Elliot as what she wanted him to be like. But she had no idea how far Elliot was into the situation or no idea how much Kathy would push Elliot to stay with her.

One Friday, Elliot and Olivia were working late on a case, when Lizzie came through the office crying her eyes out from being bullied at school that day. Kathy wasn't home to talk, so she had asked Maureen to bring her here. Elliot was shocked to see that his daughter was there, took her into the pit and talked to her. Lizzie told her dad that she was being bullied at school for being a cop's daughter. She said no one would talk to her because they thought that her mean ole father with guns and friends in the business would lock them up, but really they wanted Lizzie locked up for being an ugly girl, who had no resemblance to her brother, whom they had thought was pretty handsome. Elliot sympathized with his daughter, and told her that they were just being jerks. He wanted her to find friends, but knew how cruel kids could be. Lizzie's life would never be plain and simple. Lizzie did tell her father that he had missed her dance night where parents could watch their daughter's progress. But Elliot had a case that required his presence and an all nighters to cape a rapist who had traced a young girl down, and raped her because she looked like an ex-wife that he had had years ago. She said at the dance studio when people asked where her father was, Lizzie said that he was off catching sex criminals. Then, it really started to hit home for Lizzie because she was told that her father didn't love her enough to come home every night and be with the family. She couldn't take it anymore.

That night after the kids were in bed, Kathy and Elliot talked about Lizzie's situation. Kathy wanted nothing more than to be there for her daughter but one of the women at the clinic called and said that they needed for her to cover for them because her kid was sick. She couldn't just say no. But Elliot was mad, that was her responsibility that night, and she let him down as well as their daughter. That's when Kathy buckled down and gave her demands.

"Elliot, I don't know what to tell you. I'm sick of always being the bad guy when you have a case and no one can make it to something that our kids' have. I'm sick of always telling the kids that Daddy has to work late tonight to put the bad guys away. I mean, they need their father."

"Kathy, it's my job. The cases come and go, and we needed all hands on deck to find the guy. I am a cop, that's my duty. We are a family, and you always come first, but I can't always be there. You need to step up and be there for our children when I can't."

"It's always the job, Elliot. The job is the most important thing to you. So you know what here an ultimatum is!"

"Wait, you're giving me an ultimatum now?" Elliot said, shocked that this is what his family has come to.

Ultimatums to Elliot were choices and how would he choose? He didn't want to know what the choices were because he had an inkling of what was going on.

"Yes. You either quit your job at SVU or are a family man. Or you leave and never come back. I can't take it! The kids understand your job but they need their father. So you choose the job or us!"

Elliot sat there in shock of everything he just heard from Kathy. His inklings and feelings were right. How was he to choose being two parts of his life that meant the world to him? How could he let one of his family's down while respecting and gaining more time with the other? What was he to do? He told Kathy that in the morning, they would talk about it and he would be giving his decision then. Kathy agreed, knowing that this would be hard for Elliot but it had to be done, given the recent events and circumstances.

The next day, Elliot gave Kathy his decision that he had made that night. He always had made his decisions over a night of sleep. Elliot was going to be with his family and make Kathy happy. Now he had to break ties with SVU and it was going to be hard. He knew he couldn't talk to anyone but Olivia and Cragen about it. They understood his situation with his family was different then their own situations. But this was the end of the line for him. He had to do, and it was going to feel like a piece of his heart was breaking.

At work that day, he walked in and everything had changed. The office looked completely different.

"Fin, what's going on man? Why the change in scenery?" He had to ask and Fin was the only one there.

"Renovations due to Cragen's order were done over the weekend. You saw it Friday, we were a mess."

"Yea, hey is Captain here? I need to talk to him."

"He and Liv are in there, good luck man."

Elliot walked towards the captain's office like he had done so many times, but this time it felt different. He was about to go tell them the biggest news of his life. He quickly knocked on the door and when he heard the familiar "Come in" from Cragen, he entered.

"Elliot what's up?"

"Uh, Captain, you mind if I have a word with you?"

"Yea, sure. Benson, we will continue this later."

"No, I need Liv to stay. She needs to here this." Elliot said, taking one look at Olivia. She did the same, and with a questionable twinkle in her eye. She thought there was something that she was going to here coming from Elliot concerning her. But she wasn't prepared for what was coming.

"Kathy gave me an ultimatum over the weekend. Either I quit SVU or I leave the family."

"You've got to be freaking kidding me? She said that!" Olivia said, in surprise.

"Liv, please, this is hard enough as it is." Elliot said. Cragen just stood there.

"I've decided to leave the unit. I can't miss anymore recitals, or games or events that my kids have and I want to try again with Kathy."

"So, what are you saying detective?" Cragen said.

"I quit! Here's my badge and my gun!"

He felt like it was a band-aid that had to be ripped off. But what hurt him most was the look on Olivia's face. Elliot looked at Olivia who had tears in her eyes and quietly dismissed herself. She couldn't hear it anymore. Elliot was quitting. She found an interrogation room, went in and cried. She couldn't believe that her partner was leaving her.

After a good hour or so, she walked out, puffy eyed and red in the face, and went to her desk. With the two new detectives, Rollins and Amaro there, she was the senior officer for them. She had to move on. She looked once more at her old partner's desk. He had already cleaned out the desk and nothing was left. Could she survive without him!

A/N: Okay, guys please don't throw the computer. I have ideas for them to get back together. Believe Me. Review!


	3. When You're Gone and Kids Weighing In

Chapter 3: When You're Gone and Kids Weighing In

He was gone. Elliot had left SVU and just said to her that he quit, gave his gun and his badge, and that's it. To Olivia, it seemed like Elliot didn't feel like the twelve years at SVU, working with her, meant anything since he decided to be with Kathy. Now, Olivia hated Kathy. Kathy was the one who gave that terrible ultimatum to Elliot and he took the bait. He didn't even care to discuss it with her. Did their partnership mean anything? Why was she the only one allowed in Cragen's office with Cragen when he delivered the hard blow? It was as if Elliot stuck a knife in Olivia, not deep, but just enough to stop airflow for a while.

Even though Fin, Nick, Munch, and Amanda didn't know the story behind the quitting, they knew he was done and saw greatly how it affected Olivia. Every morning they would witness her coming in first thing, tired, and red in the face, from crying at night. She didn't want to accept that her partner of twelve years had suddenly quit. Anytime Elliot's name was brought up from an old case that was now being worked on again or something in the work room brought back memories, Olivia just left the room and completely lost it. She would go every day to the interrogation room, if it was open, and cry. Olivia couldn't get past that her crazy, wild partner just decided to basically give up on them being partners and left her in the dust, with just a 'I'm quitting' line.

The other detectives understood, and just left her to mourn. But Amanda tried her best to console her, telling the boys that this was a girl matter, and she needed to be there for Olivia. She even asked Cragen to switch Amaro and Rollins out with Fin because when they were on cases if she needed to talk, Amanda could be there. Amaro was a good cop, but he wasn't sensitive to the fact that Olivia was hurting. Amanda was that way with her.

Even cases were different to Olivia. When she was with Amanda, Olivia thought all the time about Olivia. Even though Amanda had her back and she had Amanda's back, it just wasn't the same. Elliot had a certain charm and finesse when it came to cases and he dealt with them the way he always did. Sometimes he needed to beat something out of someone, and this is what Olivia missed. The Stabler she knew was gone, and there was no way to bring him back.

Olivia tried calling him, checking up on him, texting him, but there was never a response. Elliot had completely shut the squad out of his life and everything revolved around the kids. She missed just talking to him, eating Chinese at 3 in the morning, or stakeouts with him making jokes in the car. It was Elliot that Olivia missed and he wouldn't return anything that she tried to reach him with. She even went as far as to go to his house, and he wasn't there, and actually learned that they had moved to Virginia to be with Kathy's Mom.

But what Olivia didn't know was how bad Elliot was missing the SVU team as well, but Olivia most of all. Pieces of daily life would remind Elliot of Olivia, and he would talk about them with Kathy. He couldn't keep her out of his mind. Everything he does with the kids reminds Elliot of Olivia, because when he would do something, Olivia would be with him as well as how she was with kids during cases that involved them. Olivia was always great with kids and just being with his own, reminded Elliot of that.

He would try to answer each one of the calls and text messages, but he just couldn't. Kathy knew that he was getting these calls and called the company to block any calls coming from SVU or Olivia. She wanted Olivia out of Elliot's mind. It was ridiculous to her, that her husband always thought of another woman when he did anything. Even eating Chinese with him late at night, Elliot would make comments about how this is what he would do at night with Olivia when there was a really hard case, that needed to be worked on all night. She remembered how he told the story of the inconspicuous paper ball fights that they would have in the office at night, while they were doing their end all reports and everything was quiet. They weren't together; they were just having fun as partners. She couldn't take it.

Elliot found out that Kathy blocked everything from him when he wasn't recovering texts and he knew Olivia was texting him. He just had feelings that she was and waiting for replies.

"Hey, did you block everything from my phone from New York?"

"Every night you talk to me about her Elliot, and I couldn't take it, so I did what I thought was best."

"Really, maybe you didn't realize that you can't just take me back for me and let me have my friends. No, you had to rip me from everything and come out here where there's no one around and I have no communication with the world I used to know. Kathy, what were you thinking?"

"I was thinking of our family."

The kids were now approaching and even though they didn't know what the fight was about, they had inklings. Everything was about Elliot and his love for New York and the SVU department.

"Mom, what were you thinking? Dad's a New Yorker and so are we. You can't just rip us from everything and expect everything to be okay. Why do you think Dad keeps bringing Olivia up? We all miss her, we all loved her. You took that away."

"Maureen, this is not the ….."

"No, Mom, it is." Dickie came in and said. Elliot could not say anything; the kids had a right to their opinion as well.

"Dickie! Not you too." Kathy said, but the kids wouldn't listen.

Kathleen stated, "Ever since you brought us out here, we have missed our friends, SVU and Olivia. Even though we knew nothing was going on with Dad and Olivia, we knew something was going to happen eventually. You came waltzing back in and everything changed. Olivia stopped coming around and Dad became unhappy. Do you realize that?"

"That's why I caught it and cut all the connections with New York out of this family." Kathy stated firmly.

"Mom, no offense here," Elizabeth stated, but then she continued, "But this was wrong. You may have thought that you were protecting us, but Olivia was like a second mother to us. She was there for us when you couldn't be. We can't just shut her out!"

"I miss Livie!" Eli stated. And he began to cry. Maureen picked him and rocked him.

"See Kathy," Elliot stated, "No one's happy here, you needed to think harder about your family. You may have thought everything was going to change and she was just going to be a distant memory. But we can't all just leave our lives and move out here to Virginia and be happy. Your mother's great, but she is not the replacement of Olivia in our lives."

"Fine, you all don't want to be here. Move back to New York. Elliot, the divorce papers and custody papers will be waiting for you in New York!"

The next day, they all got on a plane with their belongings and went back to New York.

"I'm coming home, Liv, I can't wait to see you!" Elliot said to himself as the plane left the airport and they were in the air.

A/N: Stick with me people. One more chapter before they get back together. Reviews!


	4. Stand

Chapter 4: Stand!

During the next few hours on the flight, Elliot was a bundle of nerves. He didn't know how he was going to approach Olivia, let alone talk to her, without crying or a slap in the face. His kids saw this and tried to help him, but it was to no avail. He kept playing the scene over and over again in his mind that described the last time he saw her and the last time he was in the office. He kept seeing her pained expression and her tears flowing down her face as she exited the office. She couldn't even stand to look at him let alone hear the goodbye. It pained him to know that he hurt the only woman he truly ever loved.

When they reached New York, Elliot and his kids went straight to get their bags from baggage claim. Eli wanted to carry a bag, but Elliot picked him up and carried him while also carrying his own bag. Maureen took Eli's since it was just a small backpack. But he began having flashbacks to when he had to save Olivia's life from that drug deal guy a few years back. Even though it was Porter, who took the shot, Elliot always remembered that Olivia was the one who was in his arms, holding him like her life depended on it afterwards. He remembered what the scumbag did to her to gain power and to get away with murder.

After the flashback, Elliot moved on with his kids and saw their excitement. They couldn't wait to see Olivia and the rest of the SVU gang. They were family to them. But Elliot was nervous. He had no idea if anything would change between the dynamic that they had together. But Elliot had to get his family settled first, and then worry about the details. So he went to his former insurance guy, and they called in a few favors and the home that was once lived in by all the Stablers was now inhabited by the Stablers again, MINUS KATHY. The kids moved back in and everything was going smoothly for the family.

But Elliot was scared and nervous. Did he want to make the call? Did he want to show up at SVU and have everyone surprised to see him? How should he come back into their lives? All of this stuff mattered to him. Elliot was like this for the next few days. Maureen and Kathleen saw this and realized that their dad was scared to face her again, because of how bluntly and coldly he left. Could he do it? Could he just waltz back into her life? Has everything changed? They decided to follow her one day, and not get caught just to see what's up.

So for the next week, Maureen and Kathleen devised plans to follow Benson around the city without getting caught. They were just going in the same direction as she was. They noticed that she went home alone every night for the week. They even saw her go down their street once for a case, and knew that Elliot had seen her, since he moved to the window when he saw the sirens. Elliot just watched as she helped a little boy, badly beaten come out from the home and into the bus. But she looked down. In Kathleen's opinion, since she knew this street meant so much to Elliot, Olivia was down whenever she came to this part of the town.

Meanwhile, things were slowly getting better for Olivia. Cases were becoming easier, and she was getting used to having Amanda as her new partner. She knew something was up when she saw what looked like Kathleen and Maureen in the city, but just figured that they came back to get things that they had left. Everything was going smoothly.

One day, Olivia is sitting at her desk after doing files on her newest case. She was just relaxing and talking to Amanda about Amanda's sister, who was a troublemaker. Then, the phone rang and it was Benson who answered the phone.

"Detective Benson!" Olivia said into the receiver.

"Mommy!" The little voice over the phone replied.

"Sweetie, who are you? Are you in trouble?"

"No, I'm looking for Olivia. Is she there?" The little voice said.

"I'm Olivia. Sweetie, what's your name?" Olivia asked, knowing that this kid needed her help.

"Calvin Benson!" The little voice replied. Olivia stopped dead in her tracks. Was this really happening? Was Calvin calling her, wanting her to be his mother?

"Calvin, um, where's your mother? Does she know you're calling me?"

"Vivian's in jail again and won't be out for a while. Grammy and Grandpa are moving and I want to stay with you."

"Calvin, I'm shocked. Let me talk to some people around here and we can meet one afternoon and talk, okay?"

"Okay, Mom. See you soon!"

Olivia hung up the phone in complete shock of the conversation she just had on the phone. She asked Amanda to research the file on Vivian, while she visited Alex for advice.

When she walked in Alex's office, Alex was waiting for her. She knew that Calvin had called given the fact that Fin told her that Olivia might come and see her that afternoon for a quick visit about a special little boy.

"Hey, Liv, how can I help you?"

"Alex, I want to know what the adoption procedures are for a little boy. His name is Calvin and he was once under my custody, but then his mother proceeded to get clean and he went with her. Then he moved with his grandparents, who are now moving to California and he wants to be with me. What do I do?"

"Okay, Liv, wow, that's great that he wants to. Just have the grandparents signed over the rights and you sign the adoption papers and you're all set. What about his mother?"

"Researching information now but it seems, she lost it again and went over the deep end again. It was hard for him to see."

"I bet, I mean that's hard for any kid. Listen, I'll draw the papers. Just have them signed by his legal guardians, which are his grandparents, you sign it, and everything should be fine."

"Thanks, Alex."

"You're welcome Liv, and Congratulations!"

The next few days were spent by Olivia getting herself back on track for Calvin. She was brought the papers the next day and then everything just fell into place. By Friday, she got Calvin back and it was as though she was alive again.

Calvin Benson was a little older and knew that when Olivia watched him before that she was his mother. Now, she permanently was due to law. He was excited. Every day, they spent together, doing homework, playing and watching movies. Olivia's life was coming back. Now, she just needed love for her and Calvin. Calvin needed a male figure to look up to and she knew who, she just wanted him back.

A week after getting Calvin back, Olivia had just got off work and was heading to school to pick up Calvin when her phone rang.

She answered it, "Detective Benson", and was shocked to hear the familiar voice of someone she thought she'd never hear again.


	5. I Just Called to Say Take the Chance

Chapter 5: I Just Called To Say Take a Chance

Olivia Benson got the call when she was at work. She had just finished up a case and her phone rang.

"Benson!" she said into the cell phone.

"Liv?" the voice sounded into her ear. She froze, she couldn't think straight because of who was on the other end of this line.

She got up and walked to the interrogation room like she had done many times before.

"Who is this?" She knew who it was; she just wanted to be absolutely sure.

"Look, Liv, just because I quit, doesn't mean you don't remember Me." the voice said into the phone.

"Elliot? Elliot Stabler?" she asked, hoping her intuition was right.

"Yea, I'd know you would never forget me. Look, Liv, I want to talk. That's why I called."

"Elliot, you left. What's there to talk about?" She said, not realizing how cold she sounded.

"I deserved that, but Liv at least let me explain. I deserve that much; after all we were partners for 12 long years. We've been through the trenches and back. How can you just forget all of that?"

"El, I..." she stuttered, but he instantly cut her off.

"Look Liv, if it's any consolation to you, I miss you. I miss our partnership. I want to talk about everything that happened and fix things. I want us to be better than we were at our best times. Do you understand? Can you at least do this for me?"

"I guess, El. You really hurt me."

"Liv, give me the opportunity to make it up to you. If you'll agree to meet me, there's a reservation at Urban Country Bar on Fifth and Main, with my name on it. Meet me there tonight and we can talk through everything. If you show up, I know there's a second chance that you are giving me. If not, I'll leave you alone for the rest of your life."

"Okay, Elliot, I'll think about it and try to see you there."

"Thanks, Liv". And the line was disconnected. Olivia just stood there in shock, with tears in her eyes, with a thousand things running through her mind. That's when she texted Amanda to come see her in the room. She needed Amanda's help.

"Hey, what's up? Who was that on the phone?" Amanda Rollins said.

"It was my old partner, Elliot Stabler; he wants to meet me tonight."

"And you're wondering if you should go? Liv, if it's any consolation to you, I think you should. You've been down ever since he left, and maybe this is a way to be happy."

"But he hurt me, how can I forgive him for that?"

"Hold on, there Liv, I need back up for this, because you are sitting here, worried and concerned about it, and we obviously need to hear it from others."

"Amanda…", but Amanda had already leaned out and called Fin, Munch, Amaro and the Captain, who all came to help Olivia see that Elliot was reaching out.

"Liv, he called, now you've got to take that bait. Look when Maria left me, and took our daughter away, it was the hardest time and you got me through it. I'll get you through this." Amaro spoke up.

"Baby Girl, you got to give that boy a chance. He has taken the first plunge. You take the next one." Fin said.

"Look, I know I'm not much of an Elliot fan, but take the risk. Liv, you deserve every right to be happy." Munch said.

"But what happens if he hasn't changed and he's still with her?"

"He called, didn't he? That's a huge step." Amanda said.

"Olivia, look, take that chance. He's the one you've waited for your entire life. I mean, we all saw it the moment you walked into SVU and were partnered with Elliot. He's the one for you."

"Thanks, guys, I'm going to go home, get a quick nap in, and then go meet him. I've got to look my absolute best for him."

They all knew that this Olivia Benson was the true Benson. Now she was back with fire, passion and everything she used to be. Now if they could just keep the spark alive and Stabler here, Olivia would be her normal every day self.

A few hours later, Olivia walked out of her apartment to meet Elliot. She drove the ten minute drive to Urban Country Bar and pulled into the lot. At first, she didn't exit the car. She just sat there, praying that this wasn't a mistake. Then she saw his car, sitting in the lot above her. She took a deep breath, muttered a 'Here we go', and exited her vehicle. She was bit nervous because this was the first time in four months that she would see Elliot. Was she ready to do this?

When she walked in the bar, it seemed empty on one side. She noticed Elliot sitting there, with flowers for her. He was the only one in the section waiting for her to get there. You could tell he was a bit nervous, I mean, it's Olivia Benson we are talking about here. But when he saw her, all of the nerves broke away from him and he smiled.

"Hey, you came!"

"Hey, yourself, Stabler." Benson replied.

When they were seated, she waited for him to start relaying his story to her, but when nothing came after five minutes, she had to start, the anticipation was killing her.

"Elliot, what happened?"

"I screwed up royally. The weekend before I quit, Kathy gave me an ultimatum. She said that it was either the family or the job. Since they both held special places in my heart, I couldn't just choose one. But my family and kids mean so much to me, so I chose them. Kathy made it clear that we were taking the family to Virginia to visit her mom, and live there for the rest of our lives. I didn't want to go, but it was sort of just decided on by Kathy. Then, I quit and left SVU. You got to realize, Olivia, seeing you so upset, was the last thing I wanted to see, before I quit. I didn't want to hurt you that bad. But anyway, moving out to Virginia was not easy for any of the kids and I. We talked about you constantly, and I think Kathy couldn't take it. She blocked any contact with New York and then when everything started coming to a head on that issue, I left. It was time."

"What do you mean came to a head?" Olivia asked, wanting to know the full story.

"Kathy blocked all contact with New York, SVU, and you. She didn't want any of us thinking of what was here. One day, after I tried to call you, I found out the phone number had been blocked. I questioned her about it, and she said that she did it to protect her family. Her mother didn't agree with me always being concerned about New York and you. She got into the fight and it became a war. Olivia, I wanted to talk with you. So, I picked the kids up from school that day, packed our stuff and we came home. The kids were so happy to be back and they couldn't wait to see you. Me, I was a bundle of nerves. I didn't know what had happened with you during these past few months and I didn't want to make you any more upset than I already have."

"Listen, Elliot, I'm not going to lie, up to about a week or so ago, I was crushed, devastated. It was hard to work, hard to let alone just be myself around my co-workers. I missed you that much. But then a week ago, Calvin re-entered my life and I now have full custody of him. His mother is in jail and his grandparents are moving out of New York and they didn't want to drag Calvin with them, considering that I was all he ever talked about. He wanted me back, and now I have him."

"That's great, Olivia." Elliot said, reaching out to touch her hand. She actually let it rest there and they continued talking. After a half hour, things were starting to get easier for them and they noticed that some more people had just entered the bar. What they didn't know was that it was their friends and family, hoping to see them still together.

"Well, Olivia, this was fun, but I have one more question." Elliot said as he began to get a little nervous.

"El, what is it?"

"Will you start to forgive me now enough to go on a few dates with me?"

Olivia froze, did she really want this? She thought about what Amanda had said earlier about taking the chance to be happy and she thought that Amanda was right.

"Yes, El, I would." Olivia said, as he pulled her out of the booth and hugged her. He smiled when he saw that the others were there, and they all cheered. Everyone took some time to catch up and devise schedules so that Olivia and Elliot could have some time together, and everything was set.

Before leaving, Elliot walked Olivia to her car, and before she got in, he did something he always wanted to do. He kissed her. Everything that he felt for her was in that kissed, and she surprised him when she kissed him back.

"Everything will work out between us, Liv, believe Me.", Elliot said when the kiss broke.

Olivia nodded, and took off into her car. She noticed Elliot throw a victory hand into the air and scream 'Yes', out of her rear view mirror and smiled. She was now happy again, and this was all thanks to Elliot Stabler.


	6. What if I said?

Chapter 6: What If I said?

The next week Elliot and Olivia talked every night after work. On the nights of that week, especially Wednesday, when they needed all hand on deck to crack the case, Elliot met Olivia at the station. They talked and hung out. On Friday, the Captain gave Olivia a day off, giving the fact that he knew she wanted to be with Elliot, as well as how hard she worked on the previous case. Olivia was pleased to have the day off so she could have a girl day. She went to the spa, got a massage, and then went shopping for something cute to wear for Elliot tonight. She decided on a purple dress that went great with her hair and skin color as well as a pair of black heels that she could easily wear all day. She wanted this outfit to be perfect. She went to the hair salon, Premier Tillie, which she had always gone too. She let them color it, layer it, and then fix it so that Elliot would like it. Then she went home to get ready.

As she was waiting for Elliot to arrive, she was a bit nervous. Yes, she had seen him earlier in the week, but it was nowhere near the same circumstances, and she was scared he wasn't going to show. I mean, he does have children. But she had Calvin as well and Maureen had already promised to take care of all the kids together. Her nerves were broken the minute she heard a knock on her door. She smiled, took one last gander at herself in the mirror, and then opened the door. In amazement, she saw Elliot standing there, with a bouquet of red roses, perfect for the evening, and an open arm ready to go out. She put the flowers in a vase, and then took his arm and they went out.

"So, where are we going?" Olivia asked.

"I figured since you enjoyed the company so much last time at Urban Country, you'd like to go there again. It's our place after all."

"I'm way too overdressed for that." Olivia stated, regretting her wardrobe choice.

"Liv, you're fine, you're perfect for the evening." Elliot said with a smile.

Olivia smiled and they were off to the familiar restaurant. Urban Country was surpassingly packed that night, but it was a Friday. But as the perfect gentlemen, Elliot had already made a reservation and saw that his table was waiting for them. Olivia thought that he was almost too perfect, but just enough of perfection for her.

While eating, Olivia and Elliot rehashed about old times together. It was fun remembering all the good; they didn't dare bring up the bad that had transpired between them in twelve years of partnership.

"El, do you remember that case when we were pretending to be married so we can catch the baby killer?"

"Yea, I do.", Elliot said wondering why Olivia was bringing that up.

"That case felt more real for us, together, we were happy, together, and just loved. I've never felt that you wanted to be with me more than you have that night and that's the night that reaffirmed my love for you. I'd always love you, you were my partner, but that case brought out the best in us and I felt that this was going to be a turning point for us."

"Olivia, I felt it too. You were the perfect fake wife for me. You knew everything." Elliot said, just to agree with her. But Olivia had no idea just how much he had agreed with her. He wanted that case to prove that he and Olivia worked well together as a married couple.

"So, enough of the past, Stabler, what is going on with you?"

"Well, I settled everything with the house and the kids are happy to be home. I haven't managed to stick a job yet but this paper route that I'm doing, surely helps. I still have some money left over from the days in the force so I'm hanging in there."

"Why don't you come back? It'll be great to see you working every day, and we can be together all the time. If that's what you want, El?"

"Liv, I would like nothing more, but think about it. 1PP isn't going to like us dating and in the same department."

"Captain will figure it out, and I don't care what they think, El. I want to be with you."

That's all it took for Elliot to sweep Olivia off her feet and kiss her. He knew she was right, it was time to go back. The kids needed to have a working father, and Olivia was like a mother to them. Little did Olivia know just how much of a mother to them she actually was and how close she was going to become like a mother to them.

After kissing for a few minutes, they decided to finish their meal and head home. It was a perfect day and they didn't want it to end.

But as this evening came to a close, Elliot leaned it after dropping Olivia off, and kissed her. He had done this already that night, and just couldn't get enough of that. He invited her to his house the next weekend where they would be having a barbecue. He was firmly surprised when she agreed to show up. They kissed once more and she walked into her apartment and shut the door.

The next week flew by for both detectives. Elliot got reinstated as a detective for Special Victims, which meant that the group now had one more detective. The Captain even talked to the men down at 1PP to get Elliot back working with Olivia and to have them dating. The entire SVU squad was happy that they were dating and every now and then they would sneak off to the pit to have a little kissing time. They needed that daily.

The weekend came quickly for the couple, but they were ready. It was after several dates that week, plus the date last weekend that Elliot was finally ready to tell Olivia how he really feels about her. He had heard a song by Stevie Warner on the radio and felt that this is how he felt about Olivia. The song was What if I said. He bought the song off of iTunes and wanted to play it during the barbecue to see if Olivia caught on.

When the barbecue was on the way, Elliot asked Olivia to dance. He nodded off to Maureen, who let Eli press the play button. Calvin smiled and watched as the two love birds went into each other's arms. Even the other detectives, who were there, were excited. They knew that this was the moment that Elliot was going to share his deepest feelings to Olivia. In fact, they allowed them some privacy and took all of the kids, including a resistant Calvin, who wanted to protect his mommy, into Elliot's house to bake cookies. Fin had to bribe him with the fact that he got to lick the frosting.

When the song started, Olivia leaned in close and let the lyrics sink in to her emotions and ears. She wanted to know what song he chose, since he had this all planned. Elliot just smiled and listened as well, even though he had heard it so many times, through his planning of this spectacular event.

We've been friends for a long long time  
You tell me your secrets and I tell you mine  
She's left you all alone and you feel like no one cares  
But I have never failed you I've always been there

You tell your story it sounds a bit like mine  
It's the same old situation it happens every time  
Can't we see oh maybe you and me  
Is what's meant to be  
Or do we disagree

What if I told you -(what if I said)  
That I loved you  
How would you feel  
What would you think  
What would we do  
Do we dare cross that line  
Between your heart and mine  
Or would I lose a friend  
Or find a love that would never end  
What if I said

She doesn't love you  
Oh it's plain to see  
I can read between the lines of what your telling me  
And he doesn't hold you the way a woman should be held  
How long can I go on keeping these feelings to myself

What if I told you -(what if I said)  
That I loved you  
How would you feel  
What would you think  
What would we do  
Do we dare cross that line  
Between your heart and mine  
Or would I lose a friend  
Or find a love that would never end  
What if I said

Oh we've both had our share of loneliness  
So who's to say we can't have a many happiness  
And if I found that in you  
It would make my dreams come true  
Or would you walk away  
Hear what I have to say

What if I told you -(what if I said)  
That I loved you  
How would you feel  
What would you think  
What would we do  
Oh do we dare cross that line  
Between your heart and mine  
I've always wondered  
From that day that we met  
What if I said

What if I said  
Ohhhhhhhhh  
What if I said

After the song had ended, Olivia was in happy tears. She now knew how Elliot felt.

"Liv, I've wanted to tell you this for a long time now. We share everything, and I want you to know how I feel. I love you, Olivia Benson. I love everything about you, and want to know more of you every single day. You are my light, my world, and I can't imagine life without you."

"Elliot, I love you too. Everything you just said about me, I feel the same for you."

They kissed and everyone came outside to celebrate. Everyone that is except Calvin. He knew that this meant that Olivia was going to be spending less time with him, and more time with her new found boyfriend. When Olivia saw that he was still inside, she excused herself from the table and went to find her son.

"Hey, buddy, want to come outside and play?"

"Mom, are you going to abandon me too?"

"Abandon you? Calvin, what are you talking about?"

"Now that you have Elliot, are you going to just give me away? Vivian did and now look at me."

"Honey, that's never going to happen. I love you, and I love Elliot. But the love that I have for you, no matter where my relationship with Elliot stands will never fade. Just because we are together, doesn't mean anything changes."

"Okay, thanks for helping me."

"Come on buddy, Eli and Dickie are waiting for you to wrestle with them."

She said as he ran outside, but before joining the group again, she stayed inside and watched her son play with Elliot's kids. Elliot was beginning to get worried and decided to check up on her. When he found her, he asked her what was wrong.

"Oh, El, Calvin was upset because he just got me back and he feels like he's losing me to you. Will you talk to him for me?"

"Sure will honey, and then maybe everything will settle down. I want some more alone time with you."

Olivia smiled and kissed Elliot quickly. She went outside with him and watched as he and Calvin went off to talk together. She knew everything was going to be okay. Things were finally starting to get good for her, but she just didn't know how good they were about to get.


	7. A Tale as Old As Time

Chapter 7: A Tale as Old as Time

Telling each other they loved each other and how they truly felt was just the beginning for Olivia and Elliot. It was a big deal for them, because they each had some trepidation about a relationship because of the past. But these trepidations and fears soon went away. Everyone loved the fact that they were together. The Stabler children felt like their true mother was finally around all the time and Calvin felt like he truly belonged to a family. The other half of that family, the SVU family, was even more ecstatic for the couple. It was about time was all they really had to say.

Even though Amanda trusted Elliot wouldn't hurt Olivia, she was still scared that something might happen. She wanted to have a talk with Elliot, one on one, without Olivia around and without the men.

"Elliot, hey can I talk to you for a minute?"

"Yes, sure Amanda, be right back honey", he whispered to Olivia. She nodded and went back to work. However, work was the last thing on her mind right now as she watched Elliot and Amanda talking in the corner.

"Listen El, I trust you. But I've seen the other side of this, and I didn't like it the first time and I will hate it even more the second time. If you do anything to hurt her, I swear, I will take you out myself. You got that?"

"Amanda, don't worry about Olivia. I have her well taken care of. But anyway, thanks for letting me know where we stand. I understand you care about Liv, and you were there for her when I wasn't. I haven't made up with her yet for leaving and she won't let me forget it. I don't want to see her hurt anymore than you do."

"Okay, Elliot. I wanted to let you know what was going on in my head."

"Thanks." He said as he walked away. When he got back to his desk, which just so happen to be right next to Olivia's, she asked what was that about. He just said that they had to reach some sort of understanding and to not push it. She nodded and then all of the detectives were off on the next case that they had. This case in particular was hard for Olivia. It was an abuse/assault/molestation case of a young boy, who looked similar to Calvin. Olivia wouldn't rest until she found the guy. Every night she went home and hugged Calvin a little tighter, until they found the guy. Calvin didn't mind this at all; he loved the more attention he wasn't getting from his mom.

"Calvin, what'd ya says we go to Elliot's this weekend? He's invited us to his house for dinner and you can play with Eli and Dickie. And no young man, there will be no teasing Lizzie." Olivia said, knowing her son.

"Sure mom sounds great." She smiled and they ate Spaghetti-Os for dinner together. They were happy. Olivia texted Elliot that night, and everything was set. Sure she'd be seeing Elliot the next day, but she still wanted to let him know.

The next day, Elliot walked into the SVU department and went over to see Olivia. She wasn't there, and he knew something was up. He called her, and she started cursing into the phone saying that some idiot cut her off this morning and then Calvin forgot his lunch, so she had to bring it to him. She was on her way. Elliot was grateful because today was Friday and Saturday, he was planning on something big for Olivia. He was leaving a bit earlier this afternoon, so he could go pick up something he had been thinking about for a while now.

When Olivia finally arrived at the precinct, Elliot pulled her into the pit to kiss her, and Olivia loved this attention. After several minutes, they had to get back to work. But it was Friday and nothing serious was going on, so the Captain let them leave early. Since Olivia had to be at Calvin's school at 2:30, she left as soon as the captain said she could, with a quick kiss and a goodbye to Elliot. Elliot knew that this was the perfect time. Hell, he had wanted to do this for years now, and just couldn't manage up the courage to do it. He went to pick up his kids first and actually Eli wanted to go with him. So he brought Eli with him to the finest store in all of New York to buy jewelry, Cartier. He let Eli pick out a few things, but he knew he wanted something special. He purchased the ring, and had every intention of proposing to Olivia that weekend.

The next day, Elliot was frantically trying to make sure that everything was perfect for Olivia and Calvin. He had texted his co-workers and told them when to show up. About thirty minutes later, the co-workers showed up, and then Calvin ran through the door. He knew Olivia would be close behind and waited until she came in. When she did, he greeted her at the door and let her mingle with the group for a while. He just sat back and watched. Elliot knew that he was in love with Olivia ever since she started working SVU. He saw the gleam in her eyes, and couldn't wait to put the ring on her finger. He wanted his life with Olivia to be like a tale as old as time, like Belle and the Beast in Eli's favorite Disney movie. He was a bundle of nerves and the captain saw this.

"Elliot relax, she'll say yes, believe me." He said, trying to calm Elliot down.

After the snacks were eaten, Elliot thought that there was no better time than now. He clicked his glass and asked if he could have everyone's attention. He called Olivia to come over and stand next to him, while he made the toasts and surprises.

"Thanks to all of you who are here celebrating with me and the kids. It means a great deal to us. But there's one special person that I'd like to thank in particular. That's you, Olivia. (He said directly to Olivia). These past few months with you, but you know we've had twelve years together and that's good enough for me. I've always love d you Olivia. You know that. I will never hurt you or leave you, but I think you know that to. So, I have never loved anyone more than I love you. Everything about you is perfect to me. I can't imagine my life or my kids' life without you. I want to spend the rest of my life with you, and so in front of our family, friends, and God, will you do me the honor of becoming my beloved wife?"

Olivia was stunned. She couldn't believe her dreams were coming true. Who would've thought that this was the moment he'd propose and fulfill her wildest dreams was beyond her. But she couldn't wait to spend the rest of her life with him.

"Elliot, I would be honored to be your wife. Yes, I'll marry you!" She said as he placed the ring on her finger and kissed her like he had never done before in her life. That time, he didn't care who was around. Olivia and Elliot were now engaged. After flaunting the ring around to her family and friends, Calvin came to her.

"What is it sweetie?" she said through tears of joy, showing him the ring.

"Does this mean I'm getting a dad, brothers and sisters?"

Olivia nodded and the child couldn't be happier. He told his mother how happy he was for her. Olivia just cried after hearing that, tears of joy of course, but she was grateful that she had her man, her son, and her family. She was now after all the future Mrs. Elliot Stabler!


	8. Forever Together

Chapter 8: Forever Together

After all the excitement died down from the news of the engagement, Olivia was led away from her adoring family and friends by her true love: Elliot. He led her to the back of the house outside, where no one could see them. When they reached the spot, Elliot pulled Olivia close and kissed her as hard as he could. The desire for each other was there, but they knew that it couldn't happen because of the guests. But just the intensity of the make out session was enough to satisfy them.

"I missed you", Elliot said when he came up for air.

"El, we were together the whole day."

"Yea, but I never got to be just with you. I can't wait to be with you and only you. "

Olivia thought that this was the perfect life. They straightened themselves out after a few more kisses and went back to join the party. When they got back, they saw that everyone had pretty much gone to the living room with wine and cheese. Detectives fixed themselves a glass, they toasted to the newly engaged couples and everything was amazing. Since, everyone was talking about cases, it was somewhat tense, but once the topic changed to the wedding, it was pure bliss.

The next day, Olivia was with Elliot talking about work and then how surprised she was about the engagement. He had to know if she would do something for him, something that meant the world to him. He waited for the perfect moment to ask her.

"Liv, I know we haven't really discussed anything with the wedding yet but I need to ask you something."

"That's funny because I do too."

"Really, what's yours?"

"After seeing how excited Calvin was yesterday about the engagement, I was wondering if you will adopt him. He needs a father figure and a family."

"Liv, Calvin's an amazing kid and I'd be glad to adopt him. And my question is the same topic. Would you adopt all my kids?"

"Yes of course. They are an amazing family."

"Well my dear Olivia, let's just hope that family grows!" Elliot said with a twinkle in his eyes.

The next day was Monday and when Olivia and Elliot came into the office the next day, Cragen and the gang were waiting for them. Itself like they did something wrong. But Cragen spoke first.

"Hey guys, what are you doing here?"

Elliot answered him, "What do you mean? We are working."

"Not this week you're not" much said as he smiled at them.

"What are you talking about now?" Liv stated.

"Elliot, Olivia, we never got to give you anything for becoming engaged, so here's our gift. It's an all expenses paid trip to Oahu. Sun, Sand, and Fun." Cragen answered them.

"What! This is amazing guys, but what about work? The kids?"

"Liv, everything's taken care of. Amaro and Amanda have your cases and paperwork, and your kids' well they are going to be looked by Fin." Cragen said.

"Thanks guys, I guess we are off to Oahu. See you Monday, a week from today!" Elliot said. He hurried Liv out of the precinct.

Back at home, Elliot and Olivia both packed. They went to the school where Calvin was so Liv could tell him that she was going away for a week. Calvin's reaction was upsetting to Olivia, because he felt like everyone was abandoning him. Olivia assured him that they were doing no such thing, that it was just a vacation for Olivia and Elliot. Calvin broke down in tears, and this made Olivia break down as well. Elliot didn't realize how hard this was.

After leaving Calvin's school, the couple went to Eli's school and it was the same way with Eli. The older Stablers understood but Eli was the hardest. It was painful for the couple because this was their lives and their kids. But they knew that Fin and Munch could handle them.

They reached the airport with thirty minutes to spare before their flight leaved. They checked and in and everything was set to go. When they boarded the plane, Olivia and Elliot sat next to each other in the middle aisle. When the flight left the airport, the pilot came on the intercom and said that it was going to be a four hour flight. Olivia thought that this was the perfect time to catch a nap. She hated flying and sleeping was the best way to overcome this fear. She lies on Elliot shoulder, while holding his hand, and fell asleep almost instantly.

Elliot was happy with Olivia as he thought back to the previous few weeks. He had won the woman of his dreams and now they were engaged. He landed his job back and everything was falling into plan. He made a silent vow that he would not this trip be bad in any way shape or form. This was his time away with Olivia. Cragen wanted them to spend some time together before the wedding and this was the perfect time to do that.

When they reached Oahu, Elliot rubbed her cheek to get her to wake up. When she wouldn't wake up, he smiled and kissed her ever so lightly. At his touch, she woke up and mumbled 'Wow that was a quick flight.' When Elliot heard this, he laughed. He said, "That's because you were asleep the entire time honey."

After claiming their bags, they wanted to check in wherever they were staying. But Don had planned to have a car bring them to a loft on the beach where they would be staying. He owned the loft, and so lending it to the couple was not a problem. Both detectives were shocked and amazed when they reached the loft. They had no idea that Don had done this for them.

"El, this place is incredible. I want this vacation to bring us closer. Yes, I know we are already close enough, but I want more."

"I know it's fabulous and I totally agree. That's why honey we are heading to a private sector of the beach. I hear Don's got some friends around here, apparently, anyway."

"Wow, that sounds so sexy." she said and pulled him close for a quick kiss. The kiss lasted longer than she had expected, and she could tell through the kiss how ready he was for the next step.

"Come on, the beach waits. Our fun is waiting for us. But one last thing, Liv." Elliot said after the kiss had ended.

"What El?" Olivia said, hoping he wouldn't notice her suit.

"Why are you wearing a tankini, and yes I know the terminology, I do have girls."

"First off, wow, I didn't even realize you would notice. Second off, I don't like certain parts of my body, and my stomach is one of them."

"But Olivia, you are gorgeous; at least you are to me. Can you please change? Please, for me?"

"Okay, for you, though, and just because I love you and I don't want you mad at me the entire weekend."

When they reached their private area of the beach, Elliot spread the towels out while Olivia put on suntan lotion. Elliot had helped her when he finished with the back area of her body, and he added a few kisses around where he rubbed each spot in. She arched and moaned and felt that this was perfect. She rolled on top of him to spread his lotion on his back, which got the response of a few moans. It was like a massage to Elliot. When Liv was done, she was surprised when Elliot rolled over and began kissing her. She kissed him back and he began letting his hands roam. Right there, they made love for the first time. It was romantic. No one came near the area for a while, so they had their privacy. It was so beautiful for Olivia and Elliot.

"Liv, you're amazing, and now I'm never going to get enough of you." He said after they had made love.

"Honey, that'll never happen with you getting enough. I've picked up a few things from work and Mr. Stabler; you are going to be one satisfied man."

"Wow, that's sounds like a promise that I'm going to hold you to Mrs. Stabler."

"Mrs. Olivia Stabler has a good ring to it." Olivia said, repeating the name.

"Yea, it does."

They went through five days like this, exploring the island, having a few good kissing sessions and then going back to the loft and making love until they were too tired to continue. They talked about the wedding, adoptions and kids. They had no conversations of cases and they felt like it was a well-deserved, well-spent week that they were on vacation. Right before they left, Olivia whispered to Elliot, "Remind me to thank Don when we get home."


	9. Reality

Chapter 9: Reality

Olivia and Elliot were perfectly in sync during their vacation. But unfortunately, all good things must come to an end. When the vacation ended on Sunday, both detectives were sad to leave the loft. It was perfect for them there and they definitely had their memories. Flying back to New York was hard for both detectives, but they made it safely back to their hometown. Now, the reality of work, school, kids, arresting perpetrators, dealing with rapists and victims set in as soon as they reached home. It was an eye-opener of how easy and fun everything was and now that's over.

When Elliot and Olivia arrived at work on Monday morning, they seemed happier than ever. The first thing Olivia had to do was talk to Cragen. She needed to thank him personally.

"Captain, a word?" she asked.

"Sure, Liv, what's on your mind?"

"I wanted to thank you for the fabulous break that you gave me and Elliot. It was perfect. I can't believe you have that many hook-ups in Oahu and I don't want to know how you knew all those people, but it was wonderful."

"Liv, you deserved it, and more. You are like a daughter to me and I wanted to give you your engagement present."

"Thanks Dad. Oh and one more thing." Olivia said, before leaving the office.

"What is it detective?"

"Will you do I the honor and walk me down the aisle at the wedding? Simon said he'd be there, but he knows that I'm asking you."

Cragen sat there surprised at Olivia's request. He had already felt like a father to her and this was perfect.

"Yea, Liv, I will. It will be an honor. You're going to make a lovely bride."

"Thanks again Dad." Liv said as she walked out of the office. Cragen sat there for a few minutes taking in the fact that Olivia called him Dad. It was the first time she had ever done so, but he realized that he was more of a father-figure to her than her own father had been. Olivia went to tell Elliot that Cragen said yes, and everything was going smoothly.

"You want to do the bridesmaids and groomsmen next?" Elliot asked. Olivia nodded and told him that she would be back. She wanted to go ask.

"Alex! Glad I found you."

"Listen, Liv, make it quick, I have court."

"Be a bridesmaid?"

"Yes! OMG, this is going to be awesome!"

"Thanks, now to my maid of honor."

"Let me guess, Melinda?"

"You know me so well", Olivia said as she headed down to Medical Examination.

"Melinda, hey, got a second?"

"For you, always, Liv, what's up? Got a rape kit you want me to test?"

"Not yet, but this is different. Will you be my maid of honor?"

"Liv, I'd be the perfect MOH for you. I have got to start planning. Call me later and we can go over details."

"Absolutely, thanks Mel."

"No, Liv, thank you." and with that Olivia walked out of the room. When she got back to the desk, she nodded off to Elliot who went to ask his best man to be the best man. It was Fin.

"Hey Fin, can I ask you something about the wedding?"

"Yea man, what is it?"

"Be my best man."

"You know that was an idea I never ever had before." he said with a chuckle and agreed to be Elliot's best man. When he finished, Elliot went back to his desk and back to work.

The detectives returned to present cases and learned of everything that happened when they were gone. The present case was a rape case, where a teenage girl was raped by her teacher. The detectives were thrown off path by Melinda's assessment of the girl, who had drugs in her system. So now they were dealing with a rape, and drug case.

Olivia and Elliot worked hard on the case at hand, but couldn't keep their mind off of the fabulous week that they had. They were brought out of their reverie when two younger police officers came in the building and gave them each one envelope. Elliot thought that this was his divorce papers, and custody battle for his children. Olivia had no idea what to think and they both ripped it open together.

"Liv, what is it?"

"I don't believe this! Vivian is suing me for custody of Calvin. She can't do that can she? El, I'm not losing him!" she said as she started to break down in tears.

"It's going to be okay, honey, we'll figure it out. Alex will help us and I'm sure that our friends here will back us up."

"You haven't opened yours yet. Do it."

Elliot opened his package and it was the custody papers only. Kathy wanted full custody, sole custody of all her children.

"El, what is it?"

"Kathy wants sole custody of all my kids. No way in hell."

"She is their mother, El, but I agree with you."

"She signed off all of her rights when I left her. The kids wanted to come with me. They didn't want to stay with her, knowing that the last time they did this, Kathy went off the deep end, and slept with a few men. Men, who I might add, didn't meet the kids' approval."

"We'll fight this; everything is going to be okay." Olivia said to Elliot. But she was speaking about his case. She was scared to death about her case. She had everything she wanted and now Vivian wanted to take her son away from her.

"El, I can't be here. I need to go see him. How can I work on this rape and drug case while Calvin might be taken away from me?" Olivia said frantically. She was getting emotional about this, and Elliot thought she had the perfect right to be getting upset. They left the precinct, and headed straight to the school where Calvin was. However, Calvin wasn't there.

"What do you mean he's not here? I dropped him off this morning." Olivia said, becoming a little annoyed at the front desk.

"Ms. Benson, some woman came by and told me that she was his mother, and that he needed to go with her."

Elliot was already on the phone with everyone tracking Vivian's location. The local police said that she was at her old house, and there seemed to be screaming. When Elliot told Olivia this, Olivia ran out of the building. Vivian didn't live far from the school and prayed that she hadn't her Calvin, her son.

When they reached the house, Vivian answered the door, as if nothing was wrong. But Olivia pushed past her, annoyed as hell and went to find Calvin. She found him outside playing.

"Calvin! Oh thank god, are you alright?"

"Mommy! Vivian came and told me you don't want me anymore. She said that if I didn't go with her, everything would be trouble for Olivia's family. Mom, I'm scared."

"She'll never hurt you again, honey believe me."

She walked out of the house, holding Calvin close to her body, while they walked together. Vivian started shouting at Olivia that he was her son, and that she couldn't just take him. But seeing Olivia just walk away, Elliot stepped in.

"You go near that boy again and there will be hell to pay. You hear me, Vivian. Stay away from Calvin."

"No, he's my son. Court's going to tell who his true mother really is." With that, Vivian slammed the door, shut but opened it a moment later, with a gun in hand and shot at the car that Elliot was driving. No one got her, but Fin, who had just shown up, arrested her. He remembered Vivian from an old case, and saw that the kid was wrapped so tightly around Olivia. He checked on the other detectives and then drove off with Vivian in the back seat, with an evil smirk. She knew the courts would find Olivia as an unfit parent because of the job, and that means that Calvin could now come home.

The school was notified the next day that if Vivian returned, the police should be notified as well as Olivia and Elliot. Calvin was scared to go back to school, thinking that Vivian was there, but when he went and found that everything was okay, he relaxed and everything became easier for him. Now they just had this custody battle for him and that scared him as well because he didn't want to go back with Vivian. He loved Elliot and Olivia and wanted them to be his parents.

Meanwhile, Kathy had returned and did the same thing with Maureen, Kathleen, Eli, Dickie and Lizzie. Elliot was scared, but realized that Kathy had fallen off the sane wagon and was becoming delusional. She wanted everything to be hers, especially little Eli. But Elliot still saw her as an unfit parent. Everything was revolving around these court date sessions for both detectives and this scared them

Reality was definitely setting in, and now they have some ugliness to deal with before everyone can be truly happy.


	10. They Ain't Woman Enough

Chapter 10: They ain't women enough!

Now that each of them has their own custody battle, they wanted to fight together. Good things always came when they were together. When Cragen asked who was representing them in each case, since he found out about after hearing the story from Liv, who came in the office raging mad after they arrested Vivian, Olivia said that it was going to be Alex. It was incredible to him that Kathy and Vivian were doing this, almost like they plotted together. He had Fin check into the actual notion that these two could have worked together. But he did it discreetly so that Liv wouldn't get upset. It wouldn't be good for her to hear.

Alex came in to talk with them about everything. They took an interrogation room and Elliot and Olivia both went in with her. She knew that they were in this battle together.

"Now Liv, let's begin with you. Yours is first. So the court is going to want to know about what happened years ago with Vivian. So tell me first."

"A few years ago, El and I were working a case when her friend got killed. She told me that she had a son and that she needed to be there for him. But when I went to check in on her a few days later, she was completely drunk and dosed. She had taken some medication and was out of there. While she was put in rehab, I watched Calvin. (She smiled at the memories) it was fun, we had a good time. But then he was taken by his grandparents and his mother apparently sobered up. While under the watchful eye of his mother, Calvin was his old self. Then his mother went back to drinking and pills and that's when he called me."

"So he called you? You didn't call him?"

"He called me. He told me what happened with Vivian and that he was with his grandparents. I called them and they said they were leaving and since Calvin talked constantly about me, they thought it was best to give up custody to me. It was only fair to both of us."

"Liv, wow, I'm impressed. We have a strong case here. Just don't get thrown by D.A. West's accusations. And now your fiancée will go." Alex said as she turned to Elliot.

Elliot took hold of Olivia's hand and she scooted closer to him.

"Kathy and I have been off again and on again for a while. We were off before she used the excuse that the kids needed me to come back. So I did. Now this was a few weeks ago. She then told me that we were moving and told me to quit SVU or leave and never look back. I couldn't do that to my kids so I left. And believe me I regret it fully. When we moved to Virginia, Kathy and I still had our problems. One of the newer problems was that I missed Olivia so much. I talked about things that we used to do and share together. Kathy couldn't take it. She told me that she blocked every communication line from here and there wasn't going to be a compromise. I freaked out on her and I came home with my kids and we were happy again. We found Olivia and Calvin and everything is back the way it should be. Look Alex, this whole thing is a test for my affection for her. She wants me back but there's not a shot in hell she's getting her wish. I love Olivia, not her." Elliot said and finished with a short kiss to Olivia's lips.

"El, you're case is easy for me. You obviously have evidence she's a un- fit mother. We will use everything we got and pull this one through." She inhaled deeply and then said that the kids would be asked who they wanted to be with. The detectives agreed and then everything was done. It was hopefully going to turn out like the way it was before the court dates.

That night, sitting in Olivia's living room, Elliot seemed to notice how worried Olivia was about the court date. Her court date was tomorrow and every one really was rooting for Olivia to win. But they had no idea what West's actions or how far she would take this.

"Olivia, relax honey. Everything is going to be fine. She's not going to win."

"El, she could win and take Calvin away from me. I'm worried that they are going to pull the ugly stuff about work and that's not what I want. I don't want Calvin growing up in her household, when nothing is for sure and everything is insanely crazy. Plus having a mom who's a drinker and a drug addict is not good for a kid. Who really wants their child growing up like that?"

"Liv, honey, are you thinking about your mother? Serena never was a mother. She was just there." That's when Olivia started to cry. She knew he was right. Her mother never was around. It was hard for her growing up. Elliot immediately enveloped her in his arms and calmed her down. He saw that the kids were returning from getting their ice cream and milkshakes. He quietly whispered to her that the kids were back. Olivia's outlook completely changed and she went to eat ice cream with her son. She wanted to talk to him privately about the court date. She took him into the yard and they talked about school and stuff. Then she had to do it.

"Calvin, tomorrow Elliot, you and me will go to the courthouse. Vivian will be there and she's going to try and take you away from me. Listen to me, when they ask you who do you want to be with, answer them honestly. If you want to be with her, you can. I'm not stopping you." She said with a little tear running down her cheek.

"And live with that loser no way. I want to be with you. I want to be a Stabler. I hated living with her. I want to be with you." Calvin said honestly. Now Olivia was tearing up, but it was tears of joy. Everything was coming together. Now they had to face court and get everything set up.

The next day, Olivia, Calvin and Elliot were up dressed in their Sunday best clothes. They dropped the Stabler children off at school and headed to the courthouse. When they met Alex, Calvin was taken away for the beginning testimonials. Olivia hugged him and told him that she loved him. Then they walked into the court room. They realized that Judge Preston was presiding. After she entered and everyone was settled, she started the proceedings.

Vivian was first. She told the court how she loved Calvin and there was nothing she wanted more. But everything was brought up about her drug and alcohol abuse. That was the hole she couldn't dig herself out of. It wasn't like she denied it, but said that she was clean. But when evidence was brought against her, like the bottle of vodka and whiskey and then the painkillers and drug bottles, Vivian knew she was toast. She told the court that those were her sanity points. But they didn't believe her.

Olivia was next. She told the court exactly what she had told Alex yesterday. Things were brought up about her job requirements, but she refuted and said that everything she did was compromised by Cragen, who knew that she was taking care of Calvin. If they had a case that required she be there, the older Stabler children could watch them. It was perfect. A few things about her past were mentioned, such as her mother and the sexual assault, but she claimed that her mother's traits would not come out and the assault was over and done with. She was normal, had her fiancée and his family and evening seemed fine. Olivia finished with the statement that Vivian wasn't woman enough to take her son and raise it as he should be raised.

Next, it was Calvin's turn. Alex's assistant brought him in and he went to the stand. He was questioned on how Vivian was as a mother, and how Olivia was. The only other question he was asked was who he had wanted to be with. He responded that he had wanted to be with his true mother, Olivia. Benson was his mother, through and through. Vivian was just a person.

Court was then adjourned to decide on who would get ownership. Liv was very nervous and so was Calvin. But Elliot reassured them that it would be okay. Ten minutes later, the judge and jury returned with a verdict.

"Calvin, you are hereby given to Olivia Benson. Vivian, you are hereby imprisoned for false accusations and slander. Plus, you need to dry out. Courts adjourned."

Olivia ran to Calvin and hugged him so tight. They both were happy. Now they just had to get through one more: Elliot versus Kathy.

The next day, Elliot's court case was held. Olivia was there for him and his kids. It was the same judge as it was for Calvin and Olivia's hearing so, Olivia had some glimpse of hope. After the judge walled in, court was begun. Kathy gave her side, which proved to be an all lies. Elliot knew this to be true. She was asked about the command she gave to Elliot and the blocking of the phone, and she just said that it was necessary for the time being. The judge then called Elliot up and he told his side of the story. The story was the truth, and Elliot knew that if he played his cards right, he would win his kids. Next, the kids were asked to come up, one by one. Each said that Kathy was a bad mother and they wanted to be with Elliot and Olivia. It was perfectly set up for Elliot.

The judge ruled in favor of Elliot and everyone was happy. Kathy was given six restraining orders for all of her kids. She couldn't go near them. Elliot and Olivia could finally be happy together.


	11. Do You See What Love Can Do?

Chapter 11: Do You See What Love Can Do?  
This moment for Olivia was the best moment she shared with Calvin. She was his: finally, legally. After signing the adoption papers, she and Calvin left the Stablers for a bit of Benson time. They needed some time together anyways, some bonding time. Olivia knew that this is what Elliot wanted to do with his kids as well so it worked out perfectly.  
"Calvin, I bought something for you."  
"Mom, you didn't need to, but whatcha got?"  
Olivia laughed at his joyous behavior and wanted to tell him the story first.  
"Um, well remember that drawing you made me for me a few years back, well I still have it. But this is to remind you of me always. It will protect you and keep you safe. With this, I want you to remember that I love you." She said as she handed him a small box. In the box he found a silver chain with a mother and son bird charm. Around the mother and son birds was Calvin's name and on the back Olivia had written, "Mom's little bird". Calvin smiled and said that he loved it. She was pleasantly happy about that. It was a beautiful moment.  
Meanwhile with Elliot, he had given each one of his girls a necklace that had two hearts together, but one was bigger than the other. He wrote each of their names on the smaller hearts. To the boys, he gave dog tags, but they were engraved with their name and birth date. On the back, it said from dad - your number one fan! It was amazing to see that the kids loved their gifts but loved their father more. It was a perfect time for them.  
Liv called Elliot when she got home with Calvin, and they talked for a while on the phone. Olivia told Elliot that if he was still planning on marrying her, they needed to do some wedding details the next day, while the kids were at school. Cragen had given them off of work to do some wedding details and everything was set up. Elliot agreed and told Olivia that he would pick her up at eight the next morning. Olivia agreed and then hung up. She needed to spend a little more time with her son, as well as give Elliot some time with his kids.

"So Calvin, there's someone very special to me that I want you to meet." Olivia said to him, when the doorbell rang. It was Simon, Olivia's half brother.

"Hi, there Calvin, I'm Simon, your uncle."

"But, mom, why is he only your half brother?"

"Well, sweetie, (looks at Simon), that's a very good question. But the answer is going to have to wait, because it's going to be hard for you to understand. Now Uncle Simon and I are taking you to dinner, so go get your shoes and socks on, and brush your teeth."

Calvin ran to do what he was asked to do. But Simon wanted to talk with Olivia, and now was the perfect time to do so.

"Liv, what's going on? You bail me out of prison, so I can meet your son?"

"Listen Simon, he's my adopted son, and this is very important to me. I want both of you at my wedding to Elliot and there's nothing that is going to change my mind. Calvin is now your nephew, so please don't treat him like he's an evil creature like our father was."

"Olivia I would never hurt him, he's my nephew. I already love him; he seems like a great kid."

"Great, I need to freshen up a bit, and please don't talk about courts or anything of that nature with him. His birth mother just loss the rights to him, but she was never a good mother."

"You got it."

Olivia went to freshen up, when she heard her phone sound off with a text message. It was Elliot.

'Hey hon, how are things going?'

'They're okay, Calvin and I are going to dinner with Simon', she replied.

'You need me to come with?'

'Nah, I'm good, but hey keep this protective energy up. I like it.'

'Always for you dear. The girls and Eli and Dickie want pizza, so we are off to Pizza Pals.'

'Cool, Calvin wants Mexican, so I guess that means Nacho Mamma's.'

"Have fun, and please be careful.' He sent back as his last text.

They went out with Simon and had fun, but Olivia could tell around ten, that Calvin was exhausted. He went to sleep in the car ride back to their apartment, and Olivia and Simon talked. They talked about their father, which got a little heated, but then switched the topic on how Simon's kids were. They ended on invitations to come see them, and Olivia said she would think about it. She reminded him of the rehearsal dinner and the wedding and he said he'd be there. She dropped him off at his car, then carried Calvin upstairs, tucked him in and went to bed herself. She was happy, she had her son for real this time, her brother and his family, and her loving fiancée and his children.

Meanwhile, Elliot was having a blast a Pizza pals. He played with his children games such as pinball, skeeball, and took pictures as well as ate pizza. After eating pizza, and before they left, Dickie wanted to see if he could beat his old man at something he excelled at. He challenged Elliot in a game of air hockey. Elliot decided that this game would rather be more of a game if they had some sort of bet. Dickie agreed and Elliot bet that he would win and told Dickie that if he won, Dickie would have to do the clothes and the dishes for a week. If Dickie won, who was kind of being overly confident about the fact that he would "cream" his dear old dad, and he challenged Elliot that he had to do his homework for a week. After an intense game, and with a score of 15-14, Elliot wound up as the victor in the game. Dickie was mad because he now had to do the laundry and dishes, and the stabler children, especially Eli, were messy eaters. But Eli had told him in his own way that he would help Dickie with the dishes and Elliot was very proud of him for helping his brother. Eli just replied that if he didn't help, Maureen said that Elliot would be mad. Maureen just laughed and said that she was playing with her father, that the boys should do more around the house and now they were. It was an all good and fun time.

When Elliot reached his house, nothing seemed to be more important or to stop him for that matter, from texting his fiancée and finding out how her day went with Simon and Calvin. Maureen and Kathleen knew that this is what he wanted to do, so she got the others to help her clean the house a bit, and then they all got ready for bed. When he sent her the message, she instantly replied. She texted back that everything went smoothly and he was glad. He knew Simon was a changed man ever since those incidents years ago with the law. The law and jail changed him. Elliot's only fear was that Simon would treat Olivia the way his father did to Serena and then everything would be a mess. But after talking with Simon, days later, to make sure that he would never hurt his girl or his new son, Simon replied that he would never be his father. His father was an evil man that kept things from him, including the fact that he had a sister.


	12. Just You and Me

Chapter 12: Just You and Me!  
Elliot and Olivia were getting married this week. They had finished planning everything they needed to do for the wedding. Even Fin and Melinda stepped up and helped, which was a huge help. Everyone in The unit was happy for the couple. It was time. Elliot kept a few things from Olivia about the wedding, because he wanted it to be a complete surprise. He wanted to keep from her: Calvin's tux, the singer, and where they were going on their honeymoon. It was going to be a fantastic day for them.  
The last minutes to dos were of importance this week and their case load didn't faze them at all. In fact, Cragen shut down the precinct until after the wedding. This was a family Business after all and Olivia and Elliot were family. It was just obvious that for this occasion, work would shut down.  
Olivia had two appointments to attend to that week. One of them was the fitting for her bridal gown. She had recently gone shopping with Alex and Melinda and Amanda just to see what they had. But being from New York, they had to shop at one specific place: Kleinfelds. It was just obvious. Alex and Melinda and Amanda knew that Olivia was not a princess bride. She was a cop after all, but she still wanted to be sleek and slender. After taking a look at different styles, the consultant Sarah, put Olivia in a Lazar gown that was a fit and flare style. It had rushing, and some flowers that gave the dress a little edge. It was perfect. But today was her final fitting. And it fit like a glove. It was perfect.  
The other appointment that she had was for the final fitting of her bridesmaids' dresses. Her bridesmaids were: Alex, Amanda, Maureen, Kathleen and Lizzie. They were a fit and flare style like Olivia's dress and were royal blue. They were chosen only by Olivia who didn't want the drama. To her surprise they fit perfectly, and they loved them. It was a good day for them. They all got to feel beautiful.  
Elliot had done the same with his tuxedo and the others that were in his party including Cragen. His party included: Cragen, Fin, Munch, Dickie, and then little Eli and Calvin. Everyone pretty much fit in their suits. It was good. Elliot still wanted to see Olivia in her dress, and pressured his girls to tell him. But they were not budging.  
The girls decided Olivia needed a bachelorette party and knew that since Thursdays were girls' night at the local Cowboy bar, they decided to do the bachelorette party that night. They knew that it was going to be one drinking night for the group. When they reached the bar, Alex and Melinda told the bartender that they had a bride present. It was going to be a good night of fun, beer and of course dancing. Olivia saw that Melinda and Alex were talking to the bartender. About ten minutes later, the bartender asked the entire bar to wish Olivia congratulations and that's when Alex placed a sash over her head, Melinda put a crown. This was her night. She was the princess of the night. Olivia didn't like all the fuss on her, but she was convinced by Amanda to let go. They drank, danced and had a fabulous time.  
Meanwhile, Elliot was taken out by Cragen, Fin, and Munch for his little bachelor party. They went to Studio club and drank and partied up. Fin said that this was his last little hurrah with the boys and he needed some fun. He knew that Olivia would let him out once and a while, but was just playing. A few rounds of Jose Quervo later they went home and had a fun evening.

The next day was Friday, the day and night before the wedding. After spending the morning part of the day together, Olivia and Elliot went their separate ways. Olivia stayed with Alex, who had a huge sleepover, and Elliot stayed with Fin. Munch watched the kids, and it was at Elliot's house. At the girls' slumber party, they played games and did everything fun.

"So Liv, who is getting the apartment?"

"I think I will be putting it up for sale. It's easier that way."

"So are all of you going to fit in his house, I mean, all of you?" Melinda asked.

"Well, El and I already have a room, Eli will share with Calvin, Lizzie and Dickie already has their room, Kathleen will have hers and Maureen has her own room. So we are okay, I hope."

"Wow, that's a lot of people in one household. You better keep all the knives and glassware hidden." Alex said, laughing.

"Oh, speaking of glassware, Liv we got you a few things just to thank you for having us in the ceremony and reception."

"Wow, really? Guys, this wasn't necessary."

"Yea, it was. You know, Liv, getting to know you these past few months, I really understand your passion for the job. I got you something that you can use for work, with some added touches, feminine touches." Amanda said, as she handed Olivia the bag that she had brought. Inside the stuffing, was a gun holster and badge case? But the details made the gift more special. It was black, with hints of sparkles and jewels, and it had the initials of O.S.B, on it. The badge case was blue with diamonds on it. She put Olivia's initials on it as well.

"Amanda, it's perfect. I love it. Thanks."

"My turn." Alex said, and Olivia was excited. Alex gave Olivia a gift that was so-Olivia, according to Alex. The gift was a wine glass with a cheetah print on it, and the words on it had read, 'She can do anything!' But the cheetah print was blue, and she got a medal placed on a string around the bottom and it read, Olivia Benson! This was so true for Olivia, she felt like she can do anything at the moment.

"Alex it's beautiful. You know me well."

"Last, but of course not least, the maid of honor's gift." Melinda said proudly. This gift was a brand new white iPad with blue case. Olivia had the look of pure happiness, it was perfect.

"Melinda, you shouldn't have! Thank you so much!"

They all hugged Olivia, and then decided it was ice cream and movie time. They all wanted to watch Bride Wars. They loved the idea of the movie and it was cute. They also watched Something Borrowed, which was about two people finding their way back to each other some kind of way. The others thought that this movie was perfect for Olivia, because she did the same thing.

Meanwhile, Elliot was getting quite nervous at Fin's house. Even though they tried to get his mind off the wedding, and watch wrestling, or football, nothing would. Cragen knew that he was nervous, so he pulled him aside and talked some sense into him. It was a good idea for Cragen to do this, because Fin and Amaro would've kicked his butt for feeling like that. After he got some advice, everything was smooth sailing.

Even though he couldn't see Olivia, he had to talk to her. He sent her a text message, at around 10 PM.

'Hey, baby! How's it going?'

'Great, El, you should see these gifts, they're amazing.'

'Good, I'm glad you had fun. You about to go to bed?'

'Yea, in a few, we are finishing watching Something Borrowed. It's our story!'

'Well, that's cool. Fin and Cragen and Amaro are so funny over here, but I wanted to talk to you.'

'You won't need a phone much longer for that sweetie.'

'You're right, until then, I love you, and can't wait to see you.'

'Love you too sweetie. Gone to bed.'

'K night.'

They both went to sleep and dreamed of the next day.

The next day, Olivia was the one who was a bundle of nerves. She hated being the center of attention and today, she was just that. She was nervous about the wedding, the fact that Elliot was going to change his mind, and just ditch her, and the after party. But after coffee, some breakfast, and a massage from Alex, everything seemed to be okay. The ladies all met at Olivia's apartment, got dressed, and then went to the church. Olivia met Cragen there, and he told her that he would wait outside for her. He kissed her cheek and told her that he was proud of her. Tears started flowing and everyone had to calm the bride down, so she can finish getting her dress on, and getting everything ready for the wedding. Melinda was the perfect MOH, for Olivia, she did her makeup, helped her with the dress, and perfected everything. Alex helped Olivia with her hair, and Amanda touched up the girls from Elliot's side. It was going smoothly.

In the grooms' room, everyone was trying to make jokes to calm Elliot down. He couldn't wait to see Olivia, and her beauty. Calvin went to check on his mother, and reported back to Elliot that she was almost ready, just needed the last final touches. When the music orchestra, started the singer came out and said that this was for Olivia, from Elliot. Olivia heard the song playing and knew that this was the time when the bridesmaids and the maid of honor would go down the aisle. The song that was played during this time was "Just to hear you say that you love me" by Tim and Faith. But what Olivia didn't know was the actual singers were at the wedding and singing the song. The traditional bridal march was played and Cragen took Olivia's arm. He whispered to her that she was beautiful and gave Olivia away to Elliot.

It was a traditional ceremony, and one song that Tim and Faith came back to sing. They sang "I Need You", for the couple, and promised that they would be back later for the reception. When it was time to kiss the bride, Elliot pulled Olivia close, smiled at her, and then claimed her lips in a fiery, passionate way. Even though they both wanted the kiss to be longer, they ended the kiss, turned and the priest announced that they were now Mr. and Mrs. Elliot Stabler. It was a perfect wedding.

At the reception, everyone danced to the music of both Faith and Tim, ate, and drank. Bu when the bride and groom entered and proceeded to the dance floor, everyone backed off of it. The song was: It's your Love, and it was perfect for the couple. After this very intimate dance, the couple split into the relatives dance. Elliot danced with Maureen, and it was cute. Olivia and Cragen danced and it was to the song: My Little Girl, by Tim. It was perfect for them.

After all the excitement, Elliot and Olivia got into their limousine and it brought them to the hotel to change, and then it waited to bring them to the airport. The couple quickly changed, and were off to a location that was unknown to Olivia, but known to Elliot. He wouldn't even give her hints; all they knew was that it was going to be romantic.


	13. Breathe

Chapter 13: Breathe

On the flight to an unknown location, Olivia was very anxious. She kept trying to get her new husband to tell her the location, but he just wouldn't budge. He knew she would be surprised and they waited on the flight to know exactly where they were going. After the eight hour long flight, the flight attendant said that she was glad that they chose to fly American Airlines and had hoped that they enjoyed their stay in…..Paris! The look on Olivia's face was priceless to Elliot. It was a look of pure joy, happiness, excitement, and shock all in one.

"El, you took me to Paris! Are you kidding me?"

"No, Liv, I wanted you to have the honeymoon of your dreams and I know that this would be perfect. You have told me over the last twelve years of working together, and then this year together as a family that this is where you always wanted to go. I also figured that since we did the beach thing a few months ago courtesy of Cragen, we would do something romantic. I hope that you are not mad with my decision."

"How can I be mad at this? El, it's perfect. And so are you for my husband. I'm over the moon excited about this."

He smiled and leaned in close to kiss her. Once they got off the plane, a cab took them to the hotel. It was the hotel du Maurice, in the first arrondisment or square in France. It was so big. The one thing that bugged Elliot a little, but made Olivia smile was that this hotel did not have an elevator, which meant that they had to carry their bags up the stairs. Elliot wanted to be the macho man and carry all the bags. He refused help from Olivia, who was shocked but so proud of her new husband. He was proving himself as a worthy husband and she was not disappointed.

When they finally got to their room, the door opened and Elliot threw the bags inside. Once the bags were inside, he picked up his wife, and brought her into the bedroom. He kissed her and the fire and the passion was there. They didn't worry about anything else that night, except for making love and making sure that both of them were completely satisfied with everything that had happened and was happening to them.

The honeymoon was two weeks in Paris. They had planned to see the sights, drink the wine and eat the food, and enjoy their time away with a few late nights. On the first day, Olivia was taken up to the Eiffel Tower. She told Elliot once during their time at work that she had always wanted to see the view of Paris from the top. After waiting in the long line. Olivia climbed her way up. Elliot was a little scared of heights, but conquered his fear. When they reached to the highest point that they can go, they just looked out into the city. Olivia surprised Elliot by turning around to face him. He pulled her in close and kissed her.

"I love you so much El. I can't wait to spend the rest of my life with you. Now that everything is perfect with us, our past is behind us, we can finally be what we've always wanted to be. That's together, forever, for life. I want to have one love, always, with you my side."

"I love you too Liv. Honey, believe me; all of your dreams will come true. You are my princess and I feel like prince charming. Everything is perfect with us, and nothing and no one will ever come between us." Elliot said.

They kissed once more before heading down. That night they went to eat at a French restaurant and talk about their future. When they came back to the hotel, the sounds of pure joy and happiness could be heard from their room as they made love. It was a perfect day.

On the second day of their honeymoon, Elliot and Olivia went downstairs to eat breakfast in the hotel. They served bread and a cheese spread as well as coffee and chocolate milk. It was a good starting meal. After wards they had planned to do some shopping as well as go see the Louvre museum. Yes, it wasn't a totally romantic day, but art was very sexy to Olivia and so Elliot figured that they had better do it. Each exhibit that the Louvre had shown was beautiful. Olivia really liked the paintings that were French history. They were all very moving to Olivia and each painting told a story. After they visited the Louvre, they went to dinner and then went back to the hotel room, to have some more fun.

Days of their honeymoon were spent like that. They would sight-see during the day, making sure to stop at the romantic locations, and then had dinner at a different restaurant each night. Then they would adjourn back to their hotel room for some fun.

On the fourth day, they had gone to a restaurant where they were serving escargots, which is French for snails. Olivia had always wanted to try them, but Elliot was disgusted by them.

"El, it's a delicacy. You have to try it."

"Okay, Liv, but only for you." Surprisingly, he loved it. Olivia knew that he would and they ate that with cheese for dinner that evening.

Elliot knew that after a week of being there, Olivia started to miss Calvin. He realized this because she started talking about how great of a kid he was and how she was excited that he was her son and soon to be his son as well. The adoption papers were almost finalized and everything was coming together. Every time she would start in on Calvin, he changed the subject. He didn't want her to focus on that, because sooner or later, she'd want to go home. He didn't want this good feeling of being with her, just her, to end. He would bring up his kids occasionally, but not talk about them so much. He knew that after the two weeks were over, Olivia was going to be missing Calvin like crazy. He was right.

Everything was perfect during this time. Olivia and Elliot had made love, felt closer than ever and got to see some famous sights. They didn't want to leave after the two weeks that they were there. But as always good things must come to an end. It was a perfect time for them, but duty called and they needed to get back to their children and their daily lives.

The first thing that Olivia had told Elliot that she wanted to do when they landed was see Calvin. If she knew he was okay, everything would be fine. Something in her gut told her that something was wrong. She shrugged it off at first, but getting closer to New York, she felt it come back. She told Elliot about the uneasy feeling and he knew something was wrong. But neither of them could figure out what this something was. It had to be with Calvin, because Olivia was connected with him, through the motherly bond. Something was wrong!

**A/N: Guys, thanks for ready. Find out what's wrong with Calvin in the next chapter. But of course please review. Haven't really seen a lot of them the past few chapters, and this helps me understand if I can do something to make it better, or you like it. So, Review!**


	14. Mama

Chapter 14: Mama

Olivia knew something was wrong. She knew something had happened with Calvin. She told Elliot when they returned that if she saw Calvin, everything would be okay. But when she went to pick him up at Fin's apartment, he wasn't there. Fin said that he had gone with Ken for some father-time, and Munch was watching him. But Munch was sleeping. Somebody could have taken him, or he could have run away. But the latter explanation was crossed out, because Olivia knew Calvin wasn't that kind of kid. So where was he?

They searched high and low and asked the other children, but they said that he wasn't at school when they went to pick him up. Now Olivia knew that this was not Munch's or Fin's fault. Someone had taken him from school for some reason. But she couldn't figure it out, which could it, is. His father, Vivian, or his grandparents could be some logical explanations. Olivia still freaked out.

"El? He' missing, don't you get it? He's gone, my little boy is gone." She wailed into her husband's arms.

"Liv, maybe we can see something on the videos from surveillance at the school."

"Yea, let's go." Elliot didn't argue with her, even though he really didn't want her to go. He felt that seeing Calvin going somewhere with someone would be too much for her, and she would break down again. He already witnessed and caused one major breakdown in her life, and he was forgiven for this. However, this was something bigger than just Olivia and Elliot. This was Calvin.

At the school, the secretary and principal expressed their deepest sympathies and regrets that they could not do anything. They told them that the surveillance footage was waiting for them.

"Liv, why don't you stay here? I'm sure they must have checked in, you can get that information. I don't want you seeing this."

"Elliot, he's my son, I need to see this. I know you're just looking out for me and I love you for it, but please, I need to know."

He nodded and they both watched the tapes together. They watched the screen as Fin dropped Calvin and Eli off. They watched as he went into the building, brought Eli to his class, and then went to his class in the next hallway. They saw him enter the classroom, and then they saw a person, who looked like another teacher, take him out of the classroom. The teacher was unidentified by the principal, so they assumed that this could be the kidnapper. Just then Olivia got a cell phone call, from an unknown number. She was scared and thought that this might be him. She told her husband to call and trace the call. They needed to know what was going on. He told one of the teachers to do it, so that he could be with his wife. He held her hand as she answered.

"Detective Benson", she answered trying to sound normal.

"Detective, how's everything going? Still using your old name I see, eh? You might as well know that I have your son."

"Who are you, and what is it that you want?"

"Oh come on Olivia, you don't recognize me?"

Olivia froze, no way could this be who she thought it was. But as the caller said that last line again, she completely knew who it was. It was Vivian.

"What are you doing? He's mine, the court decided that."

"Well, you know Olivia, that didn't sit right with me, and he is mine now."

Trying to refrain from getting angry, Olivia took a breather, held Elliot's hand tighter, and said, "Can I talk to him?"

"No, he's mine, so what is your business with him?"

"Just let me make sure that he's okay, please Vivian?"

"Okay, but make it brief." Vivian said, as she took the tape off of his mouth and gave the phone to him.

"Calvin, sweetie, are you okay?"

"Mama, help!"

In the background, you could hear Vivian scream and grab the phone loudly, slapping the boy, and then saying into the receiver,

"He's mine, Olivia, and there's nothing you can do to get him back." Then she hung up. Elliot went to the desk and asked if they had any leads. Fin and Munch said that they did and they were going to find him.

"Liv, we've got a location. He's going to be back in your arms and back home in no time."

Olivia broke down again, and sank to the ground. Vivian had lost it once again, and now she had Calvin. It was devastating for her.

"El, I'm going with you. I'll wear a vest, and be protected, but I can't watch you and the others go get my son."

"I knew you would say that. Honey, we need to go now, and get him, before things get worse for Calvin."

Olivia nodded and stood up, holding Elliot close to her, to feel some sort of comfort. But all kinds of craziness were going on in her head. Questions were running like crazy, but until Vivian had been put into custody, they would have to wait for those answers. This was a normal and typical case of kidnapping, but this time for Olivia and the SVU gang, it was personal. This was Calvin Stabler.

When they reached the other side of Manhattan, Olivia started to worry way more than she had before. What if Calvin's already hurt? What if she did something to him? Elliot tried to calm her down, but nothing would ease her mind. When she got to the location, an abandoned warehouse on the east side of Manhattan, Olivia was ready, and scared at the same time. She knew she was going in to save her son, but was she ready to see the damages done to him? She heard him being hit on the phone, and almost lost it. She told Elliot before they went into the house that wherever she was, she wanted him next to her. She would need him to get through this.

Knocking on the front door, Olivia Benson-Stabler was growing impatient. Finally, the door opened and Vivian stood there, with a gun to Calvin's head.

"Oh my god!" Olivia exclaimed. Olivia saw the gun pointing to her son's head. She was now afraid for her life, but what Elliot saw was different, and related this to his wife, secretly.

"How can I help you, officers, I'm busy with my son, so this has to be quick."

"Liv," Elliot whispered, "She's drunk, and loaded. We've got to get Calvin away."

Olivia nodded, and tried to talk to Vivian.

"Vivian, listen, just let Calvin go, and we can talk something out."

"No, then you'll take him away and never let me see him again. I'm his mother."

Olivia's thoughts were running like crazy, but she couldn't speak them. "I promise, Calvin will see you soon. I'll make arrangements with the judge."

"NO, don't you get it. I hold the power." She said, as she pointed the gun towards Olivia. "Don't you get it, I can take your life right now, and then make Calvin forget about you completely. It's simple."

"Should everything be okay with just one shot Vivian? Should this be a question of forgetting who he truly believes is his mother?"

"Calvin's mine, all mine."

"Okay, Calvin's yours, I won't bug you again." Olivia said, winking at Calvin, but did it discreetly, so that Elliot and Calvin were the only two people that saw her do it.

"Fine, walk away, now." Vivian said, and Olivia did as she was told.

"No, Mama!"

"This is the way it has to be buddy. You belong to Vivian." Olivia said, as she saw Elliot move around to behind Vivian. When he grabbed her gun, a shot rang out, and Calvin ran to Olivia. She hugged him as tightly as she could. When she looked up, she saw Elliot getting to his feet, and Vivian on the ground. She was gone forever. Vivian was now in the past.

Both detectives ran to each other and hugged each other. They looked at the now dead Vivian and Olivia put her head close to Calvin's. She started to tear up because everything that had happened in the past few hours. She was close to losing her son, and her husband. Elliot saw the tears, and wiped them away with his thumb. This was something that no parent should ever have the chance to go through. It was scary for all of them, and now it was over.

After giving their statements to Cragen, Elliot and Olivia went to their house. Olivia never let go of Calvin one time during the ride home, and he didn't blame her. But everything was over now. He just knew that this battle was now over, and everything was done. Now they could finally live their life, without worrying about Vivian or custody battles or Kathy.

They went to their house and Olivia laid with Calvin until he fell asleep. It was a long day for him and he needed his mother there to sleep with him. When he was in a deep sleep, Olivia and Elliot moved to their room. During the night, Olivia woke up with nightmares about Calvin and Elliot dead. Once Elliot proved that she was dreaming, she cried into his shoulder and they fell asleep from then on. Getting through it was over, now it's the forgetting and letting go part that was their battle. But it's the Stablers. They can do anything.


	15. Fix You

Chapter 15: Fix You

Getting over the events from the past few days was easier for some, rather than others. It was a time of hardship, and sadness and now it was time to forget that. Elliot had helped Olivia anyway that he could, support her, and getting her through this tough time. She got over it, and became back to her old self. However, Calvin was the one that was having a hard time with it. He thought he would never see Olivia again, his mother. He had many nightmares and would wake up frightened and scared. Olivia began to get concerned about him, and it became apparent to the entire family that he wasn't dealing with this well.

"El, I'm worried, Calvin' still having nightmares, and he's always scared when I leave the room or even leave the house. We need to do something."

"Honey, it's becoming more apparent to everyone. Maybe we should take him to see someone."

"My son isn't crazy, he's just scared." Olivia said.

"I'm not saying he's crazy, but looks at the facts. He's not sleeping, he won't leave your side, and Maureen has told me on many occasions when you have gone to work, he doesn't want to go to school. He wants to be with you."

"Let me think about it. Meanwhile, let's do something, just us tonight."

"Wow, just us. I think that can be arranged." He said, kissing her.

That night, they went to dinner together, and went to Urban Country Grill. It was their place to be ever since a few months ago. Being alone together reminded Olivia and Elliot that they can conquer anything that is thrown their way. They talked about work and the kids, as well as how much they loved each other.

But what they didn't know until they got back in the car was that Calvin had snuck out of the house and into their car. He didn't want to be anywhere that Olivia wasn't. Things were getting worse. Once they got back home, they brought Calvin inside and then to his room. He fell asleep instantly, but that was only because Olivia had been there holding his hand.

"Honey, this is getting out of control. What's next? We need to get him to talk to someone. Maybe we should take him to see George Huang. Maybe he can help."

"I know what you're saying honey, but this all happened so fast with him. Maybe he needs time to adjust. He saw his own birth mother killed, you almost killed, and he was kidnapped. Maybe something needs to be done, but right now, he needs me."

After a while, Olivia snuck back out of Calvin's room and into the master bedroom. She whispered to El that he was soundly asleep, and everything was fine. But Olivia had told Elliot that she needed to be wanted, and he knew what she was saying. They made love that night, and forgot all about Calvin. Those problems could wait until morning.

The next day confirmed the reasoning and facts that Calvin needed to see George Huang. While at work, Olivia and Elliot were working on a case with the others.

"Look at the facts here, guys. He uses tape, rope, and loves the attention from the public eye. He's got to be our rapist."

"Liv, we know, but there's no way to tie him to these cases."

"Let's find the tape, because the rope and the attention part we've got covered."

Elliot looked up when someone walked in and saw that it was Calvin, after hearing what Munch had said about the tape.

"Liv, uh, we've got a problem." Elliot said as he pointed towards the door. Olivia looked up and followed his gaze. She saw the shock of her life, her son, waiting for her.

"Calvin! What are you doing here? El, get him some water will you?"

Elliot nodded and went off. Munch and Fin followed him, wondering what was going on.

"Dude, what's going on?" Fin said.

"Calvin's not dealing well with the past events that have recently occurred. Now that he's home, he won't leave her side."

"Look, we can't drop the cases because of Calvin. He's an amazing kid, but El, he needs help." Munch said. Then he turned to Amanda and Nick.

"You guys go to his apartment again and find that tape." They nodded and were off.

Meanwhile, with Calvin, Olivia still wondered what he was doing there.

"Calvin honey, it's okay. What are you doing here?"

"I got scared, so I came here. I wanted to be with you, Mama."

She looked up at El, with tears in her eyes and told him to ask Fin to come play a game of jacks with him.

"Listen, I am going to talk to Dad and you are going to play jacks with Fin."

"Am I in trouble?"

"Well, Calvin, we'll see about that buddy." Elliot said, pulling his wife away. Now she couldn't take her eyes off of Calvin, while they talked.

"Liv, now do you see what's going on? He's left school, crawled in our car, as well as hidden from the kids. We need to do something."

"Yes, you're right." Olivia said, as she turned toward her captain, who was coming her way.

"Captain, where's George? I need to talk to him. Correction, we need to talk to him." Olivia said, taking Elliot's hand.

"He's upstairs. Everything okay?"

"It's Calvin, he's having a hard time these days." Elliot answered for Olivia, who was beginning to tear up.

They went upstairs to talk with George. George wanted to talk with Calvin, and so Olivia went to get him. When George talked to him, Calvin revealed that he didn't want anyone to hurt him ever again, and that included his mother. Calvin was there to protect Olivia from Vivian. Olivia knew this was the best thing for him to be talking to George. When George came out, Elliot and Olivia grew nervous and impatient, waiting for his observances and proclamation.

"Liv, he's got a high level of anxiety, and we can calm him down with a simple medication for anxiety. He's anxious about leaving you, and his nightmares confirm that he doesn't want Vivian to hurt him. He doesn't want to go back there ever again. He's got all of these thoughts that you are going to get hurt, and then go insane, and become Vivian. I know that'll never happen, so I am prescribing him a medication that will help calm him down. He is to take one each night, and then we'll see how this going. He's got separation anxiety, that's for sure. This medication will help." Huang said, hugging Olivia after he finished.

"Everything is caused by reactions of the past El, and he can't take it. This only leaves me to question what went on while he was with her, and hearing everything she said. We know she beat him and hit him, but what else did she do to my son?"

"Liv, he's going to be fine. Maybe now he'll open up and talk to people. I think that this prescription is the best thing for him, because maybe he can handle everything better."

They took Calvin home, and Olivia promised to him that she would do everything in her power to fix Calvin with all her strength. Everything was going to be okay for them. Elliot watched as Olivia held her son tightly, and realized that this was going to be an uphill battle, but they can do it.


	16. Two People Fell In Love

Chapter16: Two People Fell In Love

Calvin was getting better. Olivia and Elliot saw that gleam come back into his eyes and the medicine that Huang had prescribed for him was working miracles. It was actually giving Calvin a chance to talk with his mother and father about everything that had happened with Vivian, the day she took him. He revealed to Olivia and Elliot that Vivian did hit him, when he would tell her that Olivia was his mother. To him, a mother is supposed to give her child unconditional love and help them in any way, shape, or form. This was not Vivian. To him, his true mother became Olivia. The room that he had stayed in during his kidnapping had pictures of Vivian and Calvin, and then Olivia, and these were slashed. To Vivian, Olivia never did help her and was never an influence in her life. It was all her. Calvin revealed how harsh she was with these photos, by constantly telling Calvin that he didn't belong to Olivia and that he should slash the photos of her in his mind. Now Olivia and Elliot knew why he was so clung to Olivia those first few weeks of being home. Vivian had tortured him, and tried to make him forget the even memory of Olivia Benson. To her, she didn't exist. Elliot told Calvin that it was okay for her to feel that way, but he should never feel that way. Olivia was always going to be a part of his life.

A few days later, Elliot and Olivia had brought Calvin to school, gave him the number to the precinct, as well as their cell phone numbers. They told him that if he needed to talk, they were there. They talked to the principal and she allowed this, given the recent circumstances. The first few days, he called maybe twice a day. He just needed to reassure himself that Olivia was there for him and she was never going to let him go.

"Mommy?" Calvin called into the receiver.

"Calvin, sweetie, what is it? Are you okay?"

"Mom, I'm fine, but I just wanted to make sure that everything was okay with you. Did Vivian get you?"

"Honey, Vivian's dead. She will never hurt you again. I promise that."

"OK, great, see you later, mom!" Calvin said as he hung up. He thanked the teacher and ran off.

However, these phone calls were affecting Olivia. She would walk over to El, and sit on his lap, and wonder if it was too early for him to be going back to school. It was not that long ago, that Vivian went into his school and got him. But every time, Elliot would explain that they were doing the right thing and that he needed time. He would reassure her that everything would be fine. This was going to work out.

Olivia had started to feel sick after one time of going to talk to Elliot after one of Calvin's phone calls. She went to the bathroom and Amanda followed her, wanting to make sure that she was okay. After throwing up, she told Amanda that she was fine, but Amanda knew different. Amanda stayed with her, until Olivia felt good enough to go back to the cases.

The next time she threw up her lunch, she was on a case with a rape/murder victim, who was mutilated and strangled to death. At the site, Olivia started to question Melinda and ask her what they had. But when Melinda pulled back the sheets, Olivia felt queasy and ran to the nearest garbage. Since Elliot had never seen this before, he was quite worried. But she told them that she thought that she caught a bug at work from Nick. He had been sick earlier that week. Elliot and her went back to the case at hand, and tried to find the rapist and murderer who had done this awful deed.

The rapist and murderer had done the act twice more that week and each time at each site, Olivia got sick. She even got sick once at home when Elliot had fixed them all dinner, and it was some fried fish, with some okra. Elliot knew something was going on with Olivia.

"Liv, are you sure you're okay? Maybe you should stay home tomorrow. Captain will understand and I'm sure we can manage one day without you."

"Honey, I'm fine. I just caught a bug, besides; I want to catch this guy."

"Sweetheart, I'm only worried about you. Now, why don't you take the day off, and see how it goes. Maureen will be here with you, and you can call me at anytime."

"I like the idea, now, because I feel sick again." She said as she headed off to the bathroom. Elliot followed her and helped her. He put her straight to bed, and told the kids that she wasn't feeling well.

"I want to wish my mommy to get well." Calvin said, as he headed off to the master bedroom.

Even though Elliot was against it, fearing that whatever bug Olivia had, Calvin could catch. He let him go, with precaution, seeing how urgent the little boy had made it seem.

"Mommy, you need to get better."

"Calvin, what's wrong? Mom's going to get better soon."

"Nothing's wrong. Daddy and I want you better. You're much more fun when you are."

She laughed and told him that she needed to sleep. He left the room and told Elliot that everything was going to be okay. He smiled, but called the doctor, who had agreed to see them the next day. He called Cragen and told him that he'd be in late that next day, so he could bring Olivia to the doctor.

The next day at the doctor, Olivia sat in the waiting area, holding Elliot's hand. When the doctor called them in, they went together, and Olivia told the doctor everything she had been feeling lately. The doctor just thought it was the flu, but wanted to run some tests, just to make sure. It was just a precaution, but this still scared Olivia. What if something was really wrong with her?

"El, what if something's wrong? What if the blood tests come back and it's not good?"

"Liv, it'll be fine, we'll deal with it together as a family. We can get through whatever it may be." Elliot said, but secretly he was scared as well. He didn't want to lose her.

The doctor gave her pills for nausea and told her that the blood tests should be in during the next few days. So they left the doctor's office, scared, but optimistic about what these tests held.

The next few days, Olivia still got sick, but didn't as much. The nausea pills were helping. But she couldn't help feel anxious to know what those results said. Two days after her appointment, the doctor called while they were at work. When Olivia told Elliot that it was the doctor, they went into the pit, and answered the call together.

"Detective Olivia Stabler", she said into the receiver.

"Detective, this is Doctor Jameson, I have your results."

"Yes, doctor, what are they? Is everything okay?"

"It's more than okay, it's perfect for you. Congratulations, you're pregnant."

"Pregnant, are you sure, Doctor?"

"Yes, these tests confirm it. We have you as six weeks along. When you call next week to make an appointment, we will discuss everything. Please let your husband know and congratulations."

"Thank you, thank you so much." She said into the receiver before the doctor hung up.

"Well, what'd he say, honey?"

"El, how would you like to be a father again?"

"What? Are you sure?" Elliot said, excited for the future.

"Absolutely, Positively. We are pregnant."

"Olivia, this is unbelievable. I love you so much."

"I love you." They shared a kiss after this and were overjoyed.

"So how far along are we?"

"Six weeks, the doctor confirmed this."

"Liv, think about the date. That's right after Calvin came home after Vivian. Remember that night?"

"Yes", she said, and she knew what he was talking about.

"When do we want to tell everyone?"

"Well, let's get the entire family, SVU included, over for dinner this weekend, and then we'll spill the beans. I'm so excited about this El."

"I know you are. So am I, Liv, So am I." They kissed once more and were finally happy that this is the future they've always hoped for. It was going to be perfect for each of them.

They told the group that they had a surprise for them and that they would reveal this surprise at a banquet this weekend. The SVU squad was overjoyed, they knew something positive was happening in their lives and everything was coming into place. They told the kids the same thing. But the kids were a little harder to keep this secret from. Elliot started paying more attention to his wife at work and his co-workers started placing bets about the secret.

"Twenty bucks, Fin, she's pregnant."

"You're on, Munchie." Fin said.

"Amanda, they could be on to something. Hey I want in?" Amaro said.

"I bet forty!" Amanda said.

"Fifty", Amaro claimed, and everything were set. Munch was betting ten, and then used his conspiracy theories to back up the reasoning. They all laughed at Munch and everything was back to normal in the squad room.

Olivia and Elliot started making subtle hints to each other about the baby, at work, trying to not let the others figure it out. They would secretly talk about it, and do the same thing that they had been doing for the past year. It was perfect. Olivia was now pregnant and as of now, only she and Elliot knew. It was fun keeping this a secret from the others.

**A/N: Please review. I know that this story is long, but that's just the fun of writing it. I want to know your opinions. Please give me feedback. Thanks!**


	17. Cherish These Moments

Chapter 17: Cherish these Moments

After the excitement of the baby on the way died down, Olivia and Elliot thought about when and how they were going to tell their two families. They had heard the bets going on throughout the station on what was the big secret that they wanted to share with the family. Olivia laughed when she heard about it from Amanda, who spilled the beans after an interrogation of a perpetrator of a rape. Amanda revealed to her that since Elliot and Olivia were being secretive about what was going on, the men had decided to make a bet on what the secret might be. Amanda didn't tell her about the money, knowing that Olivia would not be too happy about that. That's when Olivia knew that this betting and dealing had gone on long enough. It was time to reveal the big secret to their family. But they wanted to tell the kids first; after all they were their immediate family. Elliot decided on taking the entire family to the Urban Country Restaurant and bar to share the news, only their kids and the happy couple.

Elliot called and made the reservations that night and it was decided that the weekend was the perfect time. All of the kids would be home and they were given permission from the captain to have the weekend off. On Friday, Elliot told all of the kids not to make any plans for Saturday, and that he was taking them out to dinner. On Saturday, Elliot and Olivia were very busy getting things cleaned and everything seemed normal. But as time winded down closer to their reservation, everyone got ready for the evening. They all piled into the van and went to the restaurant.

When they got to the known location, the kids knew something was up. This was their parents' place and something always was big news for them when they arrived. The kids sat together and everything was going smoothly. When the dinner came, Elliot and Olivia decided that this was the right time to tell them.

"Okay guys, the real reason that we came here is that we have something very important to share." Olivia said.

"We figured that much mom, what is this news?" Maureen said.

"Your father and I would like you all to know that what we are about to tell you, does not change anything we have. Everything will just stay the same, with a few new changes." Olivia said.

"JUST TELL US!" Kathleen and Lizzie said loudly, growing impatient.

"Fine, guys, we are pregnant!" Elliot said, smiling and kissing Olivia's hand.

"Ah! Another baby! This is so awesome!" All the kids exclaimed.

"We're really excited about it. We haven't told anyone else yet, so please keep it a secret. We will tell everyone this week, but just for now keep your mouths shut." she said to the kids.

"This will be my first child that I would actually carry. I have dreamt about this moment forever guys, and Calvin, I still love you!" Olivia said turning to her son!

"I love you too mom, and dad, and the new baby."

The kids and the happy couple started talking about the baby and everything was going smoothly. When they left the restaurant, chatter was still pretty high about the baby. They all decided to celebrate this and go get ice cream. Maureen said that the parents needed to be left alone for a few minutes to just relax and cherish the moment. She decided to get them their flavors as well as take the kids to get some. It was a perfect night.

"El, I meant what I said before. This will be my first child as a mother, our first kid together. It will forever bind us, just like the vows we took. I love you so much!"

"I love you more Liv, and I understand how you feel. I felt that same way when Maureen was born. She was my first child after all, but this feels better than ever!"

"We are lucky to be together now, it may have taken a while, but I'm so glad I have you!"

"I feel the same way dear, and just for that, I got you something special." He said, leaving her side for one minute to retreat to his bedroom to get the gift. When he came back, he had a small box in his hand, and it was important to him. Olivia took the box and opened it. Inside there was a necklace that had a cute baby on it. It was adorable for Olivia and she adored him even more.

The next week, the couple decided that enough was enough with the games and the bets for the SVU squad team. They needed to share this news, so that they could share in their joy. After making several subtle hints in the squad room about the baby between the two of them and the others listening closely, it was time. They waited and waited for the perfect moment and finally found one on Friday before everyone left. So at around three, Olivia and Elliot told the captain that they needed to speak with him and everyone in the conference room. While everyone gathered, Olivia grew a bit nervous to tell them. But once she had Elliot by her side, she was fine.

"Guys, we wanted to call this meeting for one specific reason. We have some news to share." Elliot said. He saw the others, lean in closer, hoping that one of them would be the lucky winner of the bet.

"We know that there is a certain bet that you guys are involved in around here that concerns us and we are here today to share in the glory. We want you all to be as happy for us as we are."

"So, without further to do, the news is…" Elliot said and in unison, Elliot and Olivia said, "We're pregnant!"

The excitement of the news filled the air, and Elliot laughed as Munch got up to pay Amanda her fifty bucks for guessing the secret. She was the winner after all, because she figured that they would want to share the news in the conference room as a family. Everyone said their congratulations and Cragen gave them a hug.

"Liv, I'm so happy for you. Does this mean that I'm a grandpa?" That's when Liv began to shed tears of joy, and nodded. She gave him another hug.

"This has turned out to be the best year of my life. I've got my man back, I'm married, I've got my son and a new baby on the way, and how can I forget my family. Thanks you guys, this means a lot to us both." Olivia said, as she received a kiss from Elliot. Everything was turning about to be perfect for each of them.

During the next month, Olivia had morning sickness each morning. Elliot had gone through this with Kathy, but it was not this bad. Elliot had pushed Olivia to see her doctor again, and when she did, the doctor gave her some nausea medication, but explained that this was normal. The kids and the SVU team put together a congratulatory celebration for them at the precinct, on the third Friday of that month. Everyone was there and celebrating the news that Olivia and Elliot were finally having a baby. Alex came and told Olivia that ever since Elliot came back, everything seemed to get better for her, and Olivia couldn't agree more. This was a brand new start for her, and yes, there was some fear of being a good mother to her unborn child, but Olivia could do it with the help of Elliot and of course both families. It was going to be perfect.

**A/N: Again, reviews are welcome. They help me become a better writer, and the more reviews I get; the happier I am that you all appreciate my story. SO Review!**


	18. You're Gonna Be

Chapter 18: You're Gonna Be

After the celebration of the news, all the SVU team went back to work. They were all excited that Olivia and Elliot were now happy together and having their first child. The next day at work, Elliot and Fin were talking in the Pit, and Elliot saw Fin grinning from ear to ear. He had seen this look before with cases, but this somehow seemed different.

"Hey, man, what's up?" Elliot asked Fin, who had a grin on his face and he was laughing.

"Dude, I was just thinking about how good you guys were together, and uh that must have been some honeymoon." He said, smirking.

"Shut up man, what goes on between Olivia and I privately is none of your business, but let me tell you man, it was worth every second of it. That child growing inside of her is a symbol of our undying love and affection for one another and it just goes to show you that everything is better once you wait for the good to come back around."

"You know it man!" Fin replied and hugged Stabler. That's when Olivia came into the room and ran to the bathroom, feeling nauseous.

"Got to go, dude, duty calls." Elliot said to Fin, as Fin walked out of the pit.

"Honey, are you okay? I know that this is normal, but maybe you should think about going home."

"El, I'm fine, it's morning sickness. Alex is bringing me something for the nausea, and I just need you to be there for me."

"Always dear, now, let's go. We've got cases to cover and I'm pretty sure Cragen won't want to see me coming out the girls' bathroom." Elliot laughed and Olivia smiled. Her husband was such a kidder sometimes, but always had her back and wanted the best thing that there was for her. She knew these statements to be true and couldn't wait to share the world with this little one.

At the case of a teenage girl being raped and then mutilated, Liv lost everything twice. She couldn't take seeing the blood and bruises. She didn't eat much that morning and had already thrown up once, but these few times, she threw up more than enough of bile. It was completely disgusting. The good part of these bathroom calls was that Elliot was with her the entire time and she leaned on him after the second time. She was weak and she needed to eat something but feared that she would lose it all again.

"Liv, you've thrown up twice here. Please think about going home. I'll just tell the captain that you're not feeling well and can't keep anything down. I know that everything is normal, but I'm worried about you."

"You know what sweetie, I think I will. I can't take this, this is all too much."

As Liv walked out of the room and back into the cop car, Munch and Fin with Amanda and Nick had just arrived on the scene. She asked Amanda to bring her home, and that she couldn't be there. It was too much for her stomach to handle. In the car, Amanda and Olivia tried to not talk about sickness and rapes. They talked about the baby, and how great it was going to be that this was truly going to happen. Olivia told Amanda that all of her dreams were finally coming true.

At home, Olivia took a long, hot shower, so she could clear her mind. At 2:30, she remembered that she had to get Calvin, and quickly put a warm up suit on and then went to get her kids. Calvin was first to be picked up, then Eli and Dickie and Lizzie. Maureen and Kathleen would be coming home together, in Maureen's car, so Olivia drove home. When she got home, she felt sick again and went straight to the bathroom. Dickie called his father and told him that Olivia was sick, but Elliot told them not to worry because this was normal for a pregnant woman.

Each of the kids took turns telling Olivia how their day had gone. Calvin said that he was having an awesome time in all of his classes and that they were planning a field trip. He showed her the permission form and she signed it. She wanted him to experience the field trip; it was to the Zoo after all. Then she remembered a case when Elliot had gone undercover at an industry where they took in the wildlife from the zoo and cut them up. The memory alone sent her back to the bathroom and she once again lost the small bites of toast that she had eaten when she returned home. Lizzie told her that everything was going smoothly and she saw a cute boy today in class that she knew she liked. His name was Dominic. Olivia said that she would help Lizzie in any way that she could. She wanted Lizzie to be happy, even if it was in her freshmen year at high school. She was fifteen after all. Dickie said that the baseball team was competing tomorrow and he wanted to know if Dad and Liv can make it. Olivia said that they would try their hardest too. Eli said that he loved to run around, but got hurt today in recess. He showed her the bruised knee and she kissed it and made him feel better. He said that the teacher gave him a Popsicle to calm down. Olivia laughed, knowing that any sweets would get this kid to calm down. When Kathleen and Maureen came home, Kathleen was in tears. She said that her boyfriend, Mitchell had broken up with her, and he was casual about it. Olivia told her that he was probably trying not to hurt her feelings, but had done so anyways. She tried to tell Kathleen that there would be other guys, and everything would be okay. She was a junior in high school after all. Lastly, Maureen said that her freshmen year in college was harder than she thought. But since she lived at home, she didn't mind missing some of the more fun college events. Olivia said that she understood and told her about her first year in college and dealing with her mother.

After all the kids were in the separate rooms, Olivia began to think about Serena Benson once more. While deep in thought, she didn't hear Elliot come in from work. When she was pulled out of her thoughts by Elliot, she looked up at him. He saw that she had tears in her eyes, and it broke his heart to see this.

"Honey, what's wrong? You okay, when I came in you seemed like you were a million miles away?"

"I was thinking about my mother."

"Liv, you are not Serena."

"I know, but you've got to promise me Elliot, if I start acting like her, then please do something to me, lock me up, keep our kids away from me."

"Olivia, do you really think that we can handle that? I sure will not be able to handle that. You are nothing like your mother. Serena wasn't a mother; she was just someone who gave birth to you. When she beat you and was drunk all the time, she wasn't your mother. She was a shell of a person."

"You're right, but how do you know I won't turn out like her?"

"It's because I know you." They hugged and then they went to check on their kids. Olivia told Elliot that she couldn't keep anything down and he made her some soup. This was the only thing she could keep down all day.

During the next few months, Olivia and Elliot had the same routine. It was a sense of normalcy for them. Everything was the way it should be. Olivia was now in her second trimester and having doctors' appointments left and right. When the doctor asked if she wanted to know the sex of the baby, they told her that this wouldn't be necessary. They wanted to be surprised. It was all in the element of surprise.

Olivia's stomach grew and grew and soon she had to take off work because she was put on medical leave, or maternity leave as some would like to call it. She still was involved in cases, but Elliot would always follow up on her leads or findings. She knew that this was getting closer and closer to the time when she'd be giving birth. They planned on names and everything had gotten done with the house. It was all coming together smoothly.

One afternoon, Maureen had come home from school to find Olivia not in the bedroom. When she opened up the door to the bathroom, she saw Olivia leaning over the sink, her face crumbled in pain. Maureen told her that they needed to go to the hospital to check things out. It was after all in her seventh month. It was a bit too early for the baby to be born. On the way, pain continued to strike Olivia and Maureen called her father. The pain was growing stronger and stronger for Olivia and she told Maureen to tell her father to meet them at the hospital. Something wasn't right with the baby, and Olivia knew it.

When they got to the hospital, everything was taken care of by Maureen. Elliot came in while they were in the waiting area, and he came straight to Olivia. When the doctor called them, he checked Olivia out thoroughly and told her that the baby was just preparing for the future. Olivia was having Braxton Hicks. Olivia didn't understand everything but knew that this was a good thing. Maureen and Elliot were both relieved but this baby had been a miracle for the Stabler family and they couldn't let anything happen to it.


	19. I Saw God Today

Chapter 19: I Saw God Today

Olivia and Elliot had prepared themselves with classes, and had prepared everything that they needed to be ready for the baby's arrival. Olivia was a little scared because of how much pain she was in during Braxton Hicks. She had heard of that happening, and when she experienced it herself, it was way worse. She couldn't stand watching the birthing movies or anything that dealt with that on television, so the girls would watch comedy movies to perk Olivia up. Her mood swings were crazy, she was happy one minute, and then upset the next. Elliot and the kids tried to be reasonable with her, given the fact that this was a normal thing for expecting mothers. It was now her second week in the seventh month, and everything began getting freakier for Olivia.

On a bright sunny afternoon, Calvin suggested that they head to the beach, to relax for a while. They packed what they needed into the van and went off to Coney Island Beach. All of the family had been given off anyway, since Spring Break was going on for all schools, and the captain had given Elliot permission to be with his wife for Spring Break. It was going to be a relaxing day. When they got to the beach, Olivia felt like a beached whale. Elliot persuaded her that she was still as beautiful as the day he first saw her, twelve years ago. Everything was going to be relaxing for them on this day. Nothing would make anyone mad or angry.

At Coney Island, Olivia and Elliot found a quiet little spot and put their stuff down, and let the kids go in the water to play. They told the older children to watch the younger children as the couple sat together. Elliot sat behind Olivia and she leaned against him. They both relaxed and talked about the baby. It was time to put some finishing touches on the baby names for their upcoming child.

"El, what do you think of Danielle Serena Stabler for a girl?"

"Liv, I think that's very pretty and appropriate. I think if you got to pick the name for the girl, I get to pick for the boy."

"Oh, well then shoot, baby?"

"Well, I was thinking, I don't want anyone to have the same name as anyone. I was think Dylan Calvin Stabler."

"Wow, I love it."

They shared a kiss, but were soon interrupted by water splashing on them. They weren't close to the water, so they knew that one of their kids had decided to joke them. But what they saw completely shocked them. It was all of their kids who had the water buckets in their hands. They looked to each other, and decided to get them back by tossing sand on them, and making them cringe in disgust. It worked perfectly, and everyone was soon covered in sand and water. This was a special time for them, as they knew that the baby would be coming shortly, and therefore the others would have responsibilities. But for now that responsibility was forgotten, and they enjoyed the company.

When it was time to go, the kids and the couple walked to the little shower to wash off any extra sand. Olivia and Elliot helped the younger ones, who then in turn tried to help their parents. When they revealed that they could handle it, the little ones sped off to the car. Olivia and Elliot spent a few more minutes trying to get all the sand off of them. Olivia revealed that she had to use the restroom, as usual, and Elliot went back to the car. He told Kathleen to go and check on Olivia after a few minutes had passed. But when he saw Olivia and Kathleen coming out of the bathroom, his fears of maybe another Braxton Hicks attack had subsided. They drove back home in pure happiness and it had been a great day.

The eighth month had come and gone quickly. There were doctor appointments and Lamaze classes that Olivia and Elliot had gone to, plus events for their children. During Olivia's eighth month alone, Eli had a play, Calvin had gone out for the baseball team, Dickie had games, and then Kathleen and Lizzie had too much homework. Maureen would help her siblings and between Elliot and Olivia and Maureen, they would help the younger ones out. It was a rough month with much to do.

When the ninth month began for Olivia, things started to get worrisome for the couple. They all wondered when Olivia was going to have the babies, plus Elliot had been planning something very secret and very special for his entire family. He wanted everything to be perfect and wouldn't reveal the secret until after the baby was born.

"El, what are you continuously planning? Is there something special?"

"Liv, yes there is but I can't tell you. Not yet, anyways, I don't want to get you too excited. We need to focus on these babies first. It needs to be perfect."

"Okay Mr. Stabler, now what do you say we do something special for our anniversary tomorrow? It's our first one already."

"I have reservations at Urban Café at seven tomorrow night. We have a lot to celebrate and the entire family is coming, even our family at SVU. I want it to be a night of surprise, so I can't really tell you anything. It's sort of like a baby shower and anniversary all in one."

"That sounds exciting, honey, I just wish I can fit into one of my good dresses. The maternity dresses have no shape to them."

"Sweetheart, you are still amazingly beautiful. I am telling you, I wouldn't have it any other way."

The next night at six fifty, everyone met at the restaurant. Elliot helped Olivia into the booth and saw that what she ordered had been a lot.

"You must be hungry tonight, baby."

"Correction, I'm not really that hungry, but your child is. He's got your appetite."

They shared a laugh and celebrated the fun before the ruckus of having a new born. Don, Melinda, Fin, and Amanda made speeches. Fin went first.

"You know you guys have really spiced things up since twelve years ago. You're pregnant, having a child, and married. Who would've thought this was to be true is beyond me. Everyone at SVU is happy for you guys, and Congratulations."

Amanda was next. "You know when everything happened in the beginning of last year, I felt like Olivia wasn't going to bounce back. She was so down and it seemed like she wouldn't be happy again. Then Elliot came back in her life, and I warned him that he would be killed - literally - if something ever happened to Olivia. But I could instantly tell that Olivia was happier than I have seen her. It was amazing to see her so happy. Elliot changed that. Now, one year later, she's happier than ever, pregnant, and married. I am so happy for you both,"

When Amanda was done, Olivia had tears in her eyes. Amanda's words were so touching for her. It meant a lot. Next up was Melinda.

"You know the couple and I go way back to when they were working on cases together and I was helping them when I could. Olivia saved my life a few years back and I would forever be grateful. But one thing that has saved Olivia's life on numerous occasions is Elliot. I knew that you'd one day be here, and you finally are."

Last but not least to give the speeches was Don. This was going to be a tear jerker for Olivia, and Elliot knew it. He held her close, and rubbed her stomach.

"Twelve years ago, a young female detective came into the squad unit ready to work. I had not known her past trials and tribulations, but what I did know was that she was a brilliant detective. She put her heart and soul on the line for the victims and worked day and night to catch whoever had done the act. I had partnered her with Elliot and at first their relationship was not well received. It was hard for them, but it became easier. Everything became easier and lighter around the squad room and it was because of these two. We even held bets on when you to be finally going to share that you loved each other. It was so good to see you working together. Then this past year when Elliot decided to temporarily leave the post for his family, I've never seen Olivia so down. It broke my heart. She's like my daughter. When she took the chance with Elliot, who I persuaded her too, she became happier and happier. Here's where we are today, married, happy, pregnant and again happy. I am so proud of you too." He said, and let a few tears fall from his eyes.

Olivia was in tears the whole time, and Elliot kissed her. They were perfect. The night continued with cake, dancing, and fun. It was a perfect evening.

On the way home, something felt weird to Olivia. She passed off the feeling as just a feeling, but then the pain started coming. When Elliot saw her in pain, he grabbed her hand and told her to breathe through it. They had gone home together, without the kids, and Maureen was going to bring them home. However, this feeling and pain didn't go away as they drove. It just got worse. Then Olivia felt certain wetness down below, and knew instantly that her water just broke.

"El, this is it. My water just broke."

"Honey, we need to get you to the hospital."

"Oh god, it hurts, this one's not waiting. Honey we aren't going to make it."

"Look, we're almost there. It's okay, honey breathe, just keep breathing." He said taking her hand.

He called the kids and the others and told them that Olivia was in labor. She was having the baby now. They got to the hospital just in time and everything was complete chaos. Twenty minutes passed by, and they were in the delivery room, waiting for the arrival of their little one. After three hours of labor, the baby was born. It was a girl. Danielle Serena Stabler had entered the world. As Olivia was fawning over her new daughter, another pain struck her. She grabbed Elliot's hand and told him to get the doctor. The doctor came and checked her out, and it turns out there was another baby on the way. This time it was a boy. Little Dylan Calvin Stabler was born as well. It was twins. After everything had died down, Elliot went to tell the family.

"Well!" everyone wanted to know.

"Its twins, Danielle and Dylan Stabler and mother are doing just fine. Come on, come and see for yourself."

Everyone was overwhelmed because to them Olivia had never been that big, but the twins were healthy and everyone was happy for them both. When the news had died down a bit, everything was quiet, and Olivia and Elliot got to bond with their new children. Both parents had thought that they saw God today in each of their little children.

"Liv, I am so proud of you. I love you so much."

"Me too honey, me too."


	20. New Beginnings

Chapter 20: New Beginnings

Olivia and Elliot were just tickled to the core. They had their kids already that were part of their family, but now they had two more children. It was a beautiful site to see when all of the children were home and they were spending time as a family. During her maternity leave, everyone pitched in to help. Even Eli, who could only do a little, helped Olivia and Elliot with the newborn twins. Family was becoming important to the Stablers, and it was time that something was different. They were still in Elliot's apartment home all the time. But Olivia knew that this little apartment wouldn't hold eight kids plus two adults, they would be so cramped. She wanted to tell Elliot that she'd thought about getting a bigger place for the family.

One night, Olivia decided to talk to her husband about the possibility of moving. She knew that it was time to talk about it.

"El, I need to talk to you."

"Okay, honey, let's talk." Elliot said.

"Don't you think we are overcrowded here? I can't even move around my own house without the kids being in the way, not that I am complaining but I think with the twins, everything will be better if we got a new place. We can have more room and the kids can have their own room, and have room to play."

"Liv, I was thinking about this too, and we do need our own spot. This old apartment and house has gotten a bit cramped. It's time for a change."

"So, when do we start looking?"

"Well dear, I've already chosen a spot. Everything is being taken care of; I have a surprise for you that you will see this weekend."

"Really, honey?"

"Yes, Liv, this weekend, you me and the kids will all go see the new house. It just was finished and furnished, so all that's waiting for is inhabitants."

"You're amazing husband, and I know this house will be amazing."

"I only live to please you Liv, and this place will be our first home together as a married couple. I know that this house here is ours, but it has too many memories of Kathy and the old days."

"I know, so do we tell the kids?"

"No, let's keep them in suspense. Its way more fun that way, we can have a secret to ourselves again."

"I like the way you think Mr. Stabler."

"I like everything about you Mrs. Stabler."

The second week in Olivia's maternity leave came and went quickly. That weekend, they were taking the kids on a field trip to see the new house, and to begin moving things there. They told the kids to pack a small suitcase of their things and that they were going on an adventure that would be more permanent later on. Of course the children were ecstatic. When they reached the new house on the upper east side of New York, everyone was shocked and amazed. They saw before them a two story house with a balcony surrounding the second level. It was breathtaking. The kids were excited, but none were as excited that Olivia. Once they began to move in, the kids all wanted to know what they were doing here. Olivia decided that it was time to tell them.

"Guys, your daddy and I want to welcome you to your new home. We are selling the old house and moving here. It's closer for all of us, and it has more space. You each get your own room and one room for Danielle and Dylan. Everything's already inside furniture wise, and it's time for us to move in."

"Mom, really, this is ours?" Dickie said, looking totally shocked and awed at the same time. He was surprised that his father would do this for them.

"Yes, Dickie, this is ours?" Elliot said.

Now each child raced inside, with Elliot and Olivia trailing behind, carrying the twins. It was time for this and this was a brand new start for them. Each child had quickly picked out his or her own room and that gave Olivia and Elliot the master bedroom and the room downstairs for the twins. Everything was coming into place.

Over the next few days, the Stablers were beginning to move everything into their new home. When everything was done, it all looked like a home, and Olivia was proud of it. It was perfect. This was the new beginning that she had hoped and dreamed for after the fact that she had already gotten her other two wishes that came true: Elliot and the twins. It was going to be perfect. The first night in their new home was good. The kids stayed up late and watched movies and the adults took care of little Danielle and Dylan. It was a perfect evening.

The next morning Olivia noticed that the twins felt funny, and Dylan was throwing up the milk that was given to him, and that despite the efforts of Maureen and herself, nothing seemed to get them to calm down and stop crying. She told Elliot about it, when he returned from the store with food, and he called the doctor. The doctor wanted them to bring them in and this worried Olivia.

"El, what if something is wrong with my babies? Nothing can be wrong, can it?"

"Liv, calm down, it may be the colic. Each of my other children went through the same thing, and it's just that they need to be on medication. It's not really a big deal. And as far as this big guy is concerned, we may have a small lactose and tolerant kid here", he said picking up his son.

But as much as Elliot tried calming her down, Olivia was still pretty scared. The twins were crying uncontrollably, and nothing would soothe them. When the doctor called them, Elliot and Olivia went with their twins to the observing table and watched carefully and fretfully, the doctor checking over their twins.

"During my initial check, the twins seem to be colicky, and that is what each test that I've done has proved. I am prescribing a low dosage of sudamedafin, as well as, try to not drink the daily coffee while you are breastfeeding, Olivia. It was not sitting well with the twins. Concerning your son's lack of intake of milk, it is that he is lactose and tolerant. You would need to give him skim and soy milk to reduce the puking of the regular milk. This was his way of telling you he is lactose and tolerant."

After they left the doctor's office, Olivia felt extremely guilty. She caused this because she needed her daily dose of caffeine. Elliot calmed her down by saying that this was natural and there's not a reason to be upset. He stopped on the way home to get some soy milk for Dylan so that when they reached home, Dylan could eat as well as his sister. Olivia calmed down after that and was glad that this was normal. Elliot called the kids and told them that the babies were just colicky and everything was going to be okay.

Over the next few days, the twins grew stronger and stronger. Olivia was starting to see differences in their wants and needs. For example, Danielle loved to be cuddled, and eat in her rocking chair. The swinging soothed her stomach. Dylan hated the rocking chair and loved to eat in his mother's arms. The twins were definitely starting to become their own person and this was so cute to their parents. Elliot saw that his newborn daughter loved to be around Olivia, and his newborn son, loved to be around him. It was a girl and guy thing. They each connected with their twins and spent the next few weeks bonding with their new babies. They knew at one point they would have to return to SVU and it wasn't going to be as easy this time around. It was going to be an uphill battle getting used to being back and separating themselves from their twins, but they could do it.


End file.
